Dani Miami
by CSIalchemist
Summary: Girls with black hair and blue eyes have been disappearing all over Miami. When Horatio and the gang find a certain ghost girl in the Everglades, they'll have to dive into her difficult past in order to save the other girls. Will Dani open up to them? RXR
1. Chapter 1

**Hooray! A midquel! It will take place during the last few chapters of_ A Psycho's Revenge_ and a little bit after.  
>I love CSI Miami! I've been wanting to do a story on it for sometime and now I am! Hope you folks enjoy this!<strong>

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN CSI: MIAMI OR DANNY PHANTOM!  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Dani Miami<strong>

**Chapter 1**

**A Witness in the Everglades**

**_Previously on CSI: NY..._  
><strong>

_Vlad finally made it to the safety of his cabin in the Rocky Mountains. He'd be safe there until Phantom and his friends took care of Shane Casey. _'Perfect! Back to square one!'_ He should have gotten more information on that psychopath. It seems that Phantom knew as much about Casey as the CSI's did. The nut job destroyed the last of Danielle's leftover ectoplasm. But maybe if he tracked down the little ghost girl, he'll have another shot at turning Taylor into a ghost hybrid._

_ Vlad turned on his computer and began researching for any sightings of a little ghost girl in the country…_

* * *

><p>Twelve-year-old Dani Phantom had been flying around the country for several months now. Too bad hunger and fatigue have begun to take its toll on her. True, she could go to her "cousin" Danny Fenton aka Danny Phantom for help but that also meant going to the town where her father was the mayor.<p>

Vlad Masters, her father or "creator" would be a better word for him, was the mayor of Amity Park. He created Danielle in an attempt to make the perfect half-ghost son, e.g. a clone of Danny Phantom. Fortunately, she figured out the truth from Danny about Vlad's true intentions and fought back. She later returned to Danny to stabilize her ghost half. Now that she's no longer in danger of becoming a puddle of ectoplasm, Dani now traveled on her own. She's only visited Danny once since she was stabilized **(that took place in between the first and second story)**. Vlad cut the visit short though.

Overcome with hunger, Dani landed in a swampy secluded area somewhere south of Florida. It's been awhile since she last looked at a map to get her bearings. All she knew was that she was somewhere in Florida. It was a warm night and extremely humid. Dani didn't know much about surviving in the woods except how to make a fire with her ghost ray. Might as well start with that.

Dani sat in front of the fire she made, wishing she could go back to Amity Park, Indiana where Danny was. At least he gets a hot meal and a warm bed. She has to make dew with whatever was available for her. She didn't know what plants were safe to eat in this swampy place. _'I guess I'll have to go into town and find free samples.'_

Sometimes Dani wished she could be adopted by Danny's family and be his little sister instead of his "cousin." But to do that would mean exposing Danny's secret to his family as well as Dani's connection to him. If she wanted to be a Fenton, she would have to wait until Danny came clean about being Phantom. But who knows when that will happen!

Her train of thought was broken when she heard a rustling in the bushes. Dani quickly changed from being a white-haired, green-eyed ghost girl into being a black-haired, blue eyed twelve-year-old girl wearing a blue sweatshirt, red shorts, blue sneakers, and red hat.

Another girl, who was about Danielle's age, wearing pink camouflage pajamas burst out of the bushes. She also had black hair and blue eyes. It looked like she's been running for sometime. Her hair had sticks and leaves tangled in it. Mud was all over her face and pajamas. She was out of breath.

"W-W-What are you doing here?" Danielle asked surprised.

"I'm…I'm running," the girl panted, "from the freaky…green lady!" She started gasping, trying to get oxygen in her lungs. "She's going to kill me!"

"Kill you?" Danielle repeated. Blue mist escaped from her mouth. Her ghost sense! Figures that this green lady was a ghost. "Quick! Hide!"

Thinking fast, Danielle quickly extinguished the fire and the two hid in the bushes. Sure enough a green ghost flew overhead. Danielle got a good look at her. She didn't recognize the ghost. She was a woman with multiple facial piercings and spiky hair. She also wore a red cloak, covering the multiple tattoos all over her body.

The girl next to Danielle still had trouble controlling her breathing. The ghost heard her and unleashed the tattoos on her body towards the girls. _'Her tattoos can come to life?'_ They swooped over the girls. The pajama girl ducked, screaming. Danielle changed into Dani Phantom and tried to fight the tattoo ghosts off but to no avail. She hadn't eaten since yesterday and her strength was leaving her fast.

"Lydia!" a voice called out. "Where's the girl? She's not the right one!"

Dani used the rest of her strength to turn herself and the girl, who was now unconscious, invisible. A bald man with a hooked nose came out of the bushes. He was wearing a black jacket and a little black hat.

The ghost, Lydia, looked around; seeing that the girls disappeared turned towards the man and shrugged.

The man groaned. "Never mind then. If we don't get her, the Glades will. She's as good as gator bait in this place." The two then left.

Dani and the girl waited a few moments then became visible. "Whew!" said Dani relieved. "They're gone. Are you okay?" The girl didn't respond. "Hey! Are you okay? Say something! Wake up!" She tried shaking the girl awake. Nothing. Sleep and hunger caught up to Dani. "Don't worry…" she tried to assure the girl. "I won't let them hurt…you…" Dani then collapsed unconscious, changing back into Danielle. "…I promise…"

* * *

><p>"That's it, Blake! This is the last time I'm going to agree to going on a morning nature hike through the Everglades!"<p>

"Come on, Carrie! It's not so bad!"

"Are kidding me? These mosquitoes are eating me alive!"

"I told you to put on bug spray before we left."

"Well, next time I want to walk on the beach and watch the sunrise!"

"Quit complaining, Carrie!"

Carrie tripped on something and fell in the mud. "Damn it!" She got up to brush herself off when she saw what she tripped on. She started screaming hysterically.

"Carrie? Carrie! What's going on?" asked Blake. He saw two girls lying in the grass. "Call 911!"

* * *

><p>Lieutenant Horatio Caine stepped out of his Hummer and approached a bald, gruff man in a suit. "What do we have, Frank?"<p>

"Couple was having a morning hike when the girlfriend tripped on something. That 'something' turned out to be a pair of girls," Frank Tripp answered in a Texan accent. "One's dead, the other one is barely conscious. She's in route to Miami General now as we speak."

"Any ID?" the redhead asked.

"Both are Jane Does at the moment. I'll check Missing Persons when we get back."

Horatio nodded. "Okay." He approached another bald man who was a little older than Frank. He was currently examining the dead girl. Horatio took off his sunglasses. "Dr. Loman?"

"This girl must have been abducted in the middle of the night," Dr. Tom Loman said without looking up. "She still has her PJs on." He pointed to the girl's blue lips. "Discoloration indicates that she suffocated." He lifted up her arm. "Bruising around the wrists show that someone grabbed her or she was tied up. I'll get a better look when I get her into Autopsy."

Horatio noticed that there was a bruise on her cheek. "Where did this one come from?"

"I'm guessing that someone might have slapped her."

Horatio nodded and turned toward the water of the Glades. "What about the other girl?"

"She was found next to our DB barely conscious. Paramedics found her malnourished and dehydrated," Loman explained. "We had to get one of our female paramedics to calm her down when she woke up. She wouldn't stop screaming."

"Could be from abuse, maybe from the father?" Horatio guessed.

"That would explain the campfire," Loman said pointing toward CSI Eric Delko who was taking pictures of the little campsite. His colleagues, Calleigh Duquesne, Ryan Wolfe, and Walter Simmons were also gathering evidence.

Dr. Loman continued. "Maybe she ran away to escape from the abuse?"

"It's possible," Horatio replied.

Meanwhile Wolfe found a puddle of glowing green slime **(hint, hint)** near one of the bushes. He grabbed a swab and took a sample. "Well, this is not your average everyday finger paint," he muttered.

"What did you find?" Calleigh asked.

"Something that appears to be glow-in-the-dark paint of some kind."

Walter and Eric approached Ryan for a closer look. Walter squinted at the sample. "You sure that's paint?"

"I don't like the way it's glowing," Eric said worriedly.

Ryan sighed and put the swab in an evidence envelope. "I'll take it to the lab and see what it is."

Horatio came to his colleagues to see what they found so far. "Anything?"

"Other than some glowing green goo, there's not much to go on," Eric said.

"How's Jane Doe #2?" Calleigh asked Horatio.

"She's on her way to Miami General at the moment. Dr. Loman believes that Jane Doe #1 might have been abducted," Horatio answered grimly. He hated cases where children were involved. Just seeing them go through this kind of nightmare reminded him of his own hellish childhood.

"You think the second girl might have known something about the first?" Walter asked.

"It's always a possibility, Walter."

"What about her behavior towards the paramedics?" asked Delko. "Loman said that she kept screaming at them until a female paramedic came to calm her down. She was afraid of the male ones."

Horatio looked at the ground in thought. "It's a possibility that she might have been abused, most likely from her father or father figure."

"I doubt she's from here, Horatio," Frank said skeptically. "Paramedics found her wearing a hoodie sweatshirt. Not really appropriate attire during this time of year. I'm thinking she's from somewhere up north."

"Could be a runaway," Walter guessed.

"If that's the case then the question is: what is she doing here in the Everglades?" Delko asked the group.

"More importantly, what is her connection to our vic?" Calleigh added.

"That my friends," Horatio said putting on his sunglasses, "is what we're going to find out."

* * *

><p><strong>And cue The Who!<strong>

**How is that? Think it's good? It might be a little short but things will improve...I hope. **

**OK! To avoid confusion, I'll call Dani's human half 'Danielle' and her ghost half...well, Dani...with an i. Duh!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Alright! I'm glad that some of you guys are enjoying this story so far! I love it when Horatio is with kids! He's soooooo sweet with them!  
><strong>

** Word to the wise: There will be mentioning of _CSI Phantom_ and _A Psycho's Revenge_. Enjoy!  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 2<strong>

**Why She's Afraid**

Danielle woke up in a strange white room. She sat up and noticed that her hair was down and there was an IV in her arm. _'Crud! How did I get in a hospital? What if they find something out about me?'_ She used her free hand to remove the IV from her arm.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you."

Danielle stopped, turned and saw a tan woman with brown hair sitting in a chair on the other side of the room.

"W-Why not?" Danielle asked scared.

"That IV is rehydrating your body," the woman explained. "It's putting the necessary fluids in your body."

"Oh," Danielle said. "Where am I? And who are you?"

The woman sighed and scooted over towards the girl. "Well, in that order: You're in the hospital and my name is Natalia Boa Vista. I'm with the police. What's your name?"

"…Danielle."

"Do you have a last name, Danielle?"

Danielle let out a "hmph" and turned away. Natalia could tell she wasn't going to give that away.

"Do you have any family we can contact? They must be worried about you."

Danielle frowned sadly. "I have a cousin in Indiana but I can't see him."

Natalia furrowed her eyebrows. "Why not? Why can't you see your cousin?"

"Because my dad is the mayor of the town he lives in," Danielle answered bitterly. "There's no way I'm able to see my cousin without running into that fruit loop."

Natalia nodded. A knock on the door interrupted their conversation. Another officer with red hair and a nurse carrying a tray of food were standing outside of the room.

Natalia turned to Danielle. "Are you hungry, Danielle?"

The thought of food made the girl's mouth water. "Mmmm hmmm!"

The CSI smiled. "Okay. I'll let the nurse in. After you're done, my friend wants to talk to you. Is that okay?"

Danielle got nervous. "Do you mean that man with the red hair?"

"Yes but he's very nice," assured Natalia. "He would never hurt you. He just wants to ask some questions of his own."

Danielle thought it over. _'She's nice. I wonder if I can trust her?'_ "Can you wait outside? Please?"

Natalia smiled. "Sure."

She left the room and the nurse came in. "Now you must be hungry, dear. Make sure you eat this slowly, otherwise you'll get a stomachache."

* * *

><p>Natalia left the room and met with Horatio.<p>

"Anything from the girl?" he asked staring at the floor. For some reason he doesn't make eye contact that much when talking with people and no one knew why. Everyone was afraid to ask.

"Her name is Danielle. She didn't tell me her last name," Natalia answered.

"Any family?" Horatio asked.

"She mentioned having a father and a cousin in Indiana. No mother was mentioned. She hasn't given me any names."

"Anything else?"

"She seems to resent her father and wants to live with her cousin but can't. Says that her father is the mayor and she afraid that he'll find her if she goes to whatever city he lives in. Called him a fruit loop," she answered. "If I had to guess, she doesn't trust adults because of her father. I'm thinking she was abused. She didn't say much about her cousin."

Horatio nodded. Getting information from Danielle might be tricky because of the abuse she might have endured from her father. However, Horatio has gotten even the most traumatized kids to talk about whatever they saw. He's able to relate to them since he himself went through the same kind of hell they went through.

A half hour later, the nurse left the room with an empty tray. "She ate every bite!" she said cheerfully. "She's ready for you now."

"Is it alright if I wait out here?" Natalia asked Horatio. "She wants me to be close by."

Horatio gave her a half-smile. "Of course." He then entered the room.

* * *

><p>Although it wasn't the best food she's ever tasted, Danielle was just happy that she had a full stomach again.<p>

The red-haired officer entered the room moments after the nurse left. Danielle tensed up. After what Vlad put her through she found it very hard to trust many adults, men in particular. The only ones she trusted were her teenage cousin Danny Fenton and his friends Tucker, Sam and Valerie (although Phantom and Valerie don't get along well).

The man sat down in Natalia's chair. He gave her a little smile. "Hi," he greeted softly.

"H-H-Hello."

"My friend outside the room said your name was Danielle. Is that right?"

She nodded. "Her name is Natalia."

The man smiled and nodded. "That is correct. My name is Horatio Caine."

Danielle quirked an eyebrow. "Horatio?"

Horatio chuckled. "It's a funny name isn't it?"

Danielle immediately panicked. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to make it sound insulting! I just never heard a name like that before!"

Horatio calmed her down. "It's alright, sweetie. I'm not mad. My mother named me after the author Horatio Alger. Have you heard of him?"

Danielle shook her head no. _'He seems nice. I still don't know if I can trust him, though.'_ Horatio continued. "Do you know why I'm here, Danielle?"

"Natalia said you have some questions for me," Danielle answered. This part made her even more nervous. Whatever she tells him will probably wind up on some social worker's desk and then she'll end up in a foster home. That's the last place she wants to go. She doesn't even have a Social Security Number. What will happen if they find out she's a product of human cloning?

"That's right. I do have some questions," Horatio said. "Is it alright if I ask you some?"

"I…I guess," she answered anxiously.

Horatio nodded. "Okay then. Danielle, what is your last name?"

Danielle had to think about that. Yes, her father was Vlad Masters but did she really want to use that name? She could say her last name was Fenton, but she's not really a member of Danny's family. The cops would find that out before the end of the day. There's really no choice.

"…Masters. Danielle Masters."

Horatio nodded again. "Now why were you so scared of telling Miss Boa Vista your last name?"

Danielle hesitated. "Because I'm afraid you'll recognize the name…my last name."

Horatio furrowed his eyebrows. "Masters…you mean the billionaire, Vlad Masters?"

Danielle gritted her teeth. "Yeah. He's a fruit loop of a father! I'm never going back to him! Ever!"

Horatio was taken aback at her answer. "What makes you say that about your father?"

Her eyes started misting. "He tried to kill me," she whimpered. Tears started running down her cheeks. The memories of her last visit to Amity Park were still fresh in her mind. While the visit still ended happily, the events leading up to it were anything but happy. She's just grateful Danny was able to stabilize her ghost half in time before the inevitable happened.

Horatio reached out to comfort her, but she quickly retaliated. "DON'T TOUCH ME!" Danielle then hid under the blankets and started crying. She was done talking.

"Alright. All right, sweetie. We'll continue later, okay?" Horatio asked reassuringly.

Knowing that they won't let her go until they find out about the pajama girl, Danielle just nodded.

"Okay, then. Do want me to send in Miss Boa Vista?"

"No!" Danielle snapped. She heard the man stand up and leave the room.

* * *

><p>Horatio left Danielle's room and met with Natalia.<p>

"Did she tell you anything?" Natalia asked.

"Her name is Danielle Masters. Her father is Vlad Masters."

Natalia's eyebrows went up in surprise. "THE Vlad Masters? From 'Forbes' magazine?"

Horatio nodded, his face grim. "She claims that he tried to kill her."

Natalia was awestruck. "I didn't even know Masters had kids. Last I heard he became mayor of some backwater town in Indiana. I didn't think Danielle's father was the mayor of the same town."

"Did she tell you what city?" asked Horatio.

"No. You?"

"No. Stay here and see if she'll talk when she's ready. I'll be at the lab," Horatio said. He started heading towards the elevator. "Keep me posted."

* * *

><p>Danielle continued to cry. How could she be so stupid? Why did she open up to two complete strangers? Now that they know who her father is, it's only a matter of time before he comes to take her to Amity Park where he'll most likely kill her and turn her into a puddle of ectoplasm. She had to get out of here. But Natalia is waiting outside of the room. Changing into Dani Phantom was out of the question. Natalia would be able to see her with that huge window people in the hallway can look into. Phasing through the floor and walls was also out. That would raise more suspicions.<p>

Natalia knocked on the window in the hallway. Danielle could tell she wanted to come in. She nodded. Natalia entered the room. "Hey," she said, "have you calmed down?"

Danielle nodded. Natalia sat down in her chair. "I'm guessing it didn't go well with Horatio?"

"No it did not," Danielle grumbled. "You're going to tell Vlad where I am, aren't you?"

"Well," Natalia hesitated, "someone has to know that you're okay."

"Then tell my cousin!" Danielle snapped. "I'm never living with my dad again! Ever!"

Natalia raised her hand silencing the girl. "Calm down, Danielle. Let's talk about your cousin. What's he like?"

Danielle did so and smiled. "He's the best! He saved me from my dad twice!"

"What's his name?" Natalia asked intrigued.

"Danny Fenton."

"You look up to him, don't you?"

"He's like a big brother to me. He hates Vlad as much as I do."

"Why does Danny hate your dad so much?" Natalia asked.

Danielle's face fell and looked down at her hands. The bitter memories of Colorado came to mind. "'Dad' wanted a son. He didn't want a daughter. He thought I was an 'imperfection.' A 'mistake…'" she trailed off. Danielle quickly slapped a hand over her mouth, realizing she almost let the cat out of the bag.

Natalia noticed but didn't push the issue. She'll save that information for later. "Danny thought you were more than that, didn't he?"

Danielle nodded. She lay back down and turned away from Natalia. She was through answering questions.

* * *

><p><strong>I know some people are probably mad that Danielle's last name is Masters. But since she's technically Vlad's daughter, what else could I do? Please don't hate me!<strong>

**You might have noticed that Danielle is pretty distrustful towards the CSI's. Well, what do you expect from a girl who has been technically abused by her own father? Don't worry. She'll warm up to them in no time!  
><strong>


	3. Chapter 3

**I'm on fire with this story! I'm loving it! Make sure to write tons of reviews!**

**Again, I do NOT own CSI Miami or Danny Phantom. I only own this story and a few of the OCs.  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 3<strong>

**Pajama Girl**

Calleigh entered the morgue where Dr. Loman was examining the body of the girl found with Danielle.

"Hey Doc!" Calleigh greeted. "How are we on our pajama girl?"

"Well, I can tell you this girl must have ran a marathon," Loman explained. "COD was asphyxiation."

"How's that?"

"I checked her lungs to find that her airway was blocked off naturally. I'm guessing that allergies or something just added fuel to the fire."

"She had asthma," Calleigh realized.

"Yes," Loman confirmed, "but an asthma attack like this isn't triggered like that." He snapped his fingers as he said the word "that."

"She had to have been running a long distance in order to have a severe asthma attack. If she had allergies, it only made things worse," he continued.

"Do you think she was kidnapped?" Calleigh asked.

"Most likely," Loman replied. "Whoever kidnapped her, wanted to make sure no one found her. Ligature marks found at her wrists and ankles indicates she was bound."

"Now we just have to figure out how she wound up in the Glades to begin with," Calleigh muttered. She then left the morgue to process Pajama Girl's clothes. "Thanks Tom!"

* * *

><p>Frank Tripp went through all of the Missing Persons reports that have been admitted this year. So far only three other girls have been reported missing in the past two days. They had all had black hair, blue eyes and were between the ages of eleven and thirteen but none of them were the Jane Does from this morning.<p>

A man entered the precinct. He had black hair with a beard and hazel eyes and was wearing sweats. Frank approached the man. "'Scuse me," Frank greeted. "Can I help you?"

The man turned to Frank frantically. "I n-n-need to report a child abduction," he stuttered. "My wife and I woke up this morning and our daughter was gone. We have no idea where she is."

"Alright, sir, calm down. What's your name?"

"Ralph. Ralph Novak," the man said. "My wife, Janet, is at home calling everyone we know if they've seen her."

Frank nodded and motioned for Ralph to sit at his desk. "What's your daughter's name?"

"Molly," he said. He pulled out his wallet and took out a picture of his daughter. "This is her school photo. It just came in last week."

Frank's heart skipped a beat. This was Pajama Girl, as the CSI's were now calling her. "Mr. Novak, I'm sorry but we've found your daughter dead this morning in the Everglades." He hated telling parents this these kinds of things.

"W-W-What? No! No! You're lying! Tell me you're lying!" Ralph exclaimed hysterically. The man sitting in front of Frank's desk broke down in tears. Frank picked up his desk phone and dialed Horatio's cell number.

* * *

><p>It's been a week since Freakshow escaped from federal prison. His ghostly assistant, Lydia, was the one who broke him or "phased him" out of prison. Since then the two have been on the run. Their current hideout was in a dilapidated cabin in the middle of the Everglades. Two days ago a man by the name Vlad Plasmius contacted him, requesting his services. Freakshow was offered $900,000 if he could find a half-ghost girl who looks like Danny Phantom. Plasmius gave the former ringmaster a description of both the girl's forms. Freakshow was given a disposable cell phone to keep in touch. He was told that the girl would most likely try to keep a low profile. So Freakshow ordered Lydia to find any girl matching Danielle's description and bring her to the Glades. Plasmius even sent his three ghost vultures to help.<p>

Right now, Freakshow was fuming at his minions' failures to find the ghost girl. "It's been two days now and you still haven't found the girl. How can you mistake these girls for the Ghost Girl?" He pointed to the three other girls that his minions have abducted. They were all whimpering in a room with no windows.

"We're two thousand and nine years old," the Leader Vulture said. "Our eyesight is not what it used to be."

"No excuses!" Freakshow exclaimed. "Why does this Plasmius guy even want the Ghost Girl?"

"Something about her playing a part in getting back at some whipper-snapper detective from New York," the second vulture answered.

"Whatever," Freakshow muttered. "At least we know she's in the area. At dusk, I want you three idiots to scan the neighborhoods for her. Lydia, I want you to scan the local hospitals tonight. If she's not in the Glades, then someone must have found her and took her to one."

"I thought Vlad wanted the Ghost Boy," the third vulture whispered to the other two. "Why the heck is he now after a ghost girl?" The other vultures just shrugged.

"What do you want to do with these other girls?" asked the second vulture.

"Eh, nothing right now," Freakshow casually replied. "When we find our target, then we'll…I don't know…let them wander the Glades until the gators eat them."

The group then heard the whimpering turn into cries of fear. Freakshow slammed the door shut. "Shut up, you brats! You want to end up like your friend from last night?" The girls shut up.

He turned to Lydia. "How could you let that girl escape?" Lydia frowned and looked at the floor in shame.

* * *

><p>Horatio's phone vibrated in his pocket. Caller ID said it was Frank. "Frank?"<p>

"I got something, Horatio," Frank answered. "Turns out our Pajama Girl does have a name. Her name is Molly Novak, twelve years old. She was abducted last night. Her father, Ralph Novak, is here with me."

"Alright. Bring him to the lab so we can get a positive ID," Horatio ordered. "I'm on my way."

Horatio ended Frank's call and dialed Calleigh's phone number. "Calleigh? What did Tom get from the girl?"

"COD was asphyxiation due to an asthma attack," Calleigh explained. "She was probably running from her kidnapper. That might have triggered the asthma attack. If she had allergies, then it made things worse for her."

"Okay. Frank has the girl's father. The girl is named Molly Novak. Apparently, she was abducted last night. Take Eric and go to the Novaks' house. Find anything that will point us in the right direction," Horatio ordered.

"I'll get a warrant and we'll be on our way," Calleigh replied.

* * *

><p>After going through yet another check-up Danielle was allowed to leave the hospital. Since she was a material witness to an abduction, Danielle had no choice but to go with Natalia to the police station. Danielle was still nervous about going with the CSI's. She still didn't trust them.<p>

The car ride to the Miami-Dade Crime Lab was a quiet one. Natalia tried to get Danielle to talk but she remained silent. Upon arrival Natalia left her in an interrogation room.

"Is it alright if I get Horatio to come and ask more questions?" asked Natalia.

"Can't you ask me instead?"

"I have some work of my own to do, Danielle. I'm sorry," Natalia answered.

Danielle's face fell.

"I'll come back as soon as he's done. I'll get you a little something if you do this."

"A chocolate milkshake?" asked Danielle. She's always wanted to try one but never had enough money to buy one.

Natalia smiled. "Okay. You answer Horatio's questions while I get some work done and I'll buy you a chocolate milkshake. Deal?" She held out her hand.

Danielle looked at the hand and then at Natalia. She smiled. "Okay. Deal." She shook her hand. Danielle was starting to warm up to her a little.

Natalia left the room. Horatio was waiting for her.

* * *

><p>Frank had Mr. Novak sitting in another interrogation room. His wife came a short time ago. Both were comforting each other. They just positively ID'd their daughter. Frank hadn't done many of those kinds of visits and he did not enjoy any of them.<p>

Horatio entered the building. "Frank, did we get anywhere with the parents?"

"Not really," Frank answered. "They were too shaken up after seeing their daughter's body. Natalia just brought in the other girl."

"Danielle Masters," Horatio corrected. "I'll interview her in a moment but right now I want to interview the parents."

Frank stopped him. "Hold on, Horatio, there's more. I think we might be dealing with multiple kidnappings. For the past two days, there have been three reports of people's daughters disappearing from their bedrooms in the middle of the night. All three have black hair and blue eyes, just like our vic."

Horatio nodded. "Alright. Contact the other parents and bring them in. I want to know if their stories match the Novaks." He then entered the room.

Ralph and Janet Novak were waiting inside. Both were sitting at the table.

"Mr. and Mrs. Novak?"

Both looked up at Horatio. "Have you found the one who killed our daughter?" asked a frantic Janet.

Horatio looked down at the floor before answering. "Not yet, Mrs. Novak. We do, however, have a possible witness to your daughter's abduction. She was found unconscious next to your daughter."

"I don't understand," sobbed Janet. "The medical examiner said she died of an asthma attack. How can that be? She hasn't had an asthma attack since she was eight."

"Molly had serious asthma," Ralph explained. "She always carried an inhaler with her. She's not the best at sports but she enjoys going to games. In fact I took her to a Dolphins game for her birthday last year. I even took her to go fishing over the summer."

"When we saw that she was…missing this morning, we knew something was wrong because her inhaler was still on the floor next to her nightstand," Janet finished.

Horatio silently listened to the parents explain Molly's condition. "Did she have any allergies?"

The parents looked at each other then at the lieutenant. "No, although the heat and humidity made it harder for her to breathe sometimes," Ralph explained.

Horatio nodded. "I see. The reason I'm asking is because we believe she might have escaped from her kidnapper and started running through the Everglades where we found her." The parents nodded. Horatio took out a photograph of Danielle. "Do either of you know this young lady? She was found unconscious next to your daughter."

The parents looked closely at the picture. "No," Janet answered. "We haven't seen her before. Do you think she might also have been kidnapped?"

"We're not sure."

"She looks like Molly," Ralph pointed out. "Except that this girl is a lot paler and skinnier than her. And she's shorter than Molly."

Horatio moved on. "Do you have any idea who would want to harm Molly?"

The Novaks were taken aback at the question. "Of course not!" Janet exclaimed. "Molly was a sweet girl. Everyone we know adored her."

"She never got into any fights at school…as far as we know," Ralph added.

Horatio nodded again, looking outside the window. Janet began to cry again. "Please! Find the monster that did this to my baby before he does it to someone else's!" she begged.

"I will. I promise."

* * *

><p><strong>Hope you're enjoying this story! I'm having fun writing it! <strong>

**Okay! I know the deal between Natalia and Danielle sounded silly but nothing gets a kid talking like being rewarded with a treat! And believe me, a milkshake is always a treat to me! Yummy!  
><strong>

**Question: Any idea who Dani's mom would be? It's only natural that Horatio would want to know.  
><strong>


	4. Chapter 4

**Yay! New chapter is here! Danielle is a little weepy in this chapter, but she'll be back to her perky self soon enough! Enjoy!  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 4<strong>

**Gathering Evidence**

Horatio entered the Interrogation Room. Danielle was sitting at the table drawing pictures (paper and crayons courtesy of Natalia). Horatio took a look at some of the drawings that the girl was drawing. One of them was a picture of a boy with white hair and green eyes wearing a black jumpsuit. Next to him was a girl that looked like him except she was shorter.

Horatio sat down next to Danielle who jumped in her seat when she noticed him sitting down.

"Those are very nice pictures, Danielle," Horatio complimented.

"…Thanks. I hardly ever have a chance to draw when I'm traveling. It's fun," mumbled Danielle.

"Who is this?" he asked referring to the picture of the white haired boy and girl.

"That's Danny Phantom. And that's his cousin, Dani Phantom…with an 'i'."

"Are they superheroes?"

Danielle smiled. "Uh huh! They fight ghosts."

Horatio chuckled. He cocked his head when he noticed a lot of other pictures she drew. One of them was a picture of Molly Novak and Danielle. "Is that you?"

"Yeah. The other girl is the girl who ran into me last night. Is she okay? She was having a hard time breathing," Danielle asked worriedly.

"Her name is Molly. But right now I want to know what you were doing in the Everglades. Can you tell me?" Horatio asked gently.

Danielle stopped drawing and looked down in her lap. She's going to have to stretch the truth to keep her identity a secret. "I got lost. I didn't know exactly where I was. All I knew was that I was somewhere in Florida. I was really hungry but I didn't know what was safe to eat in that swampy place. So I just made a fire and rested for a while. That's when that girl Molly came. She was in pink camo pajamas. She looked scared, like she was running away from a killer in a horror movie."

Horatio nodded. That would explain how Molly was found with Danielle. "What was she running from? Did she say?"

"She said a freaky lady was going to kill her," Danielle said grimly. She wasn't going to add that the lady was a green ghost. He wouldn't believe her. He'll probably think it's a child's fantasy. Danielle may be a twelve-year-old girl, but she is smart. Danny once told her (during one of her rare visits to Amity Park) how the police treated children differently during interrogation. How he knew this was a mystery to her.

"Did you see this woman?" asked Horatio curiously.

"Yeah. We hid so she wouldn't find us. She had spiky hair, like a Mohawk. She also had piercings all over her face. And she had tattoos all over her body," Danielle described as best she could without mentioning the fact that the lady was a ghost. "But Molly wasn't able to keep quiet. She kept gasping like a fish out of water."

"Did the woman find you?"

Danielle frowned, her eyes starting to water. "Yeah. She tried to attack us. I tried to fight her off but I was weak from hunger."

Horatio frowned. Tears started running down Danielle's cheeks. "I was just trying to protect that Molly girl. She was so scared. When the lady left, the girl wasn't breathing. I didn't know what to do. I had no idea what was wrong with her. And then I passed out."

Horatio put his hand on Danielle's back. She flinched. He started rubbing her back comfortingly. "Danielle, you did nothing wrong. What you did was a very brave thing," he said comfortingly. He gave her a tissue. She blew her nose and dried her eyes. Now she wished more than ever to be with Danny. She knew that her "cousin" would always protect her. She just wished he would come and take her back to Amity Park, whether or not Vlad is there.

"Molly is dead, isn't she?" sniffled Danielle. "I saw those paramedic guys put her in a black bag."

"I'm sorry, Danielle," Horatio said softly. "She didn't make it." Danielle broke down. Horatio gave her another tissue. He continued rubbing her back, saying, "It's okay" over and over again comfortingly.

"I promised her I wouldn't let anything hurt her and I couldn't even do that!" Danielle wailed.

"That's not true, sweetie," Horatio assured. Danielle looked up at the lieutenant questioningly. "You fought to protect her. She died knowing that someone was protecting her from harm. What you did was very heroic and Molly will never forget that."

Danielle sniffled. "Really?"

Horatio gave her a small smile and nodded. "That's right. Her family will really appreciate what you did for her."

Danielle sniffled again and smiled back. She now believes she can trust this redheaded cop. No one, besides Danny, comforted her like that. She felt warm inside. She liked it. She can trust him with her life but with her secret? She'll have to wait and see.

"Did you see any other girls your age out in the Everglades?" asked Horatio.

Danielle shook her head no. "There are other girls in trouble?"

"We believe that you may have something in common with these girls. They all had black hair and blue eyes like you and Molly."

Danielle gasped. That would explain why she was still here at the police station. She was not only a material witness but also a possible target.

* * *

><p>Eric Delko was more than happy to help Calleigh Duquesne search the Novak house. He's been in love with her since after he got shot in the head a few years ago. True, he admitted his feelings to her awhile back but due to some circumstances involving the Russian Mafia, his estranged father, and an undercover investigation, their relationship has been pretty rocky. Nonetheless, Eric wants his relationship with Calleigh back on track.<p>

The couple has been searching high and low for anything that would point to a kidnapping. The housekeeper let them in after they showed her the warrant. They ended their search at Molly's bedroom.

"This room looks like any twelve-year-old girl's bedroom," Eric commented. "Clothes are scattered on the floor. Bulletin board is covered with bands I've never heard of…"

"Complete with wall-to-wall posters of Justin Bieber," Calleigh finished. They looked through the unmade bed. The lamp on the nightstand was knocked over. Calleigh saw something else on the floor. "Found the inhaler," she announced. She got out a camera and took a picture of it.

"Bag it and tag it," Eric responded from the closet looking through the clothes on the hangers.

Calleigh then looked at the window and noticed some scratch marks on the frame. "Looks like this girl put up a fight. Found scratch marks on the window sill." She noticed that there was the same glowing green slime that was found at the crime scene. "There's more weird slime too."

"Better take a sample anyway. Might be from our kidnapper," Eric responded. His cell phone started ringing. It was Wolfe. "Talk to me, Wolfe."

"And hello to you too," Wolfe responded sarcastically.

Eric chuckled. "Get anything from the slime from the Everglades?"

"No, that's the thing. There is nothing, repeat NOTHING, in our databanks that says what this stuff is," Ryan explained.

"Well, is it paint?"

"Didn't you just hear me? I said there is nothing in our databank to compare it to. It's not paint. It's not tree sap. I have no idea what this stuff is! There are no traces of anything in this slime except twigs, leaves and dirt. All of which can be found in the Everglades." This was rare. Wolfe always had something to compare to when it comes to Trace.

"What about DNA? There has to be traces of DNA or something," Eric remarked.

"I checked three times," Ryan replied. "I did every kind of test I could think of on this stuff. I've got nothing."

"That's why we love ya, Wolfe," Eric said. "You _triple _check everything. Have you tried the national databanks? Maybe this stuff showed up somewhere else."

"I'll look into it." Wolfe then hung up.

Calleigh looked at Eric questioningly. "What was that about? Ryan having trouble in the lab?"

Eric nodded. "Yeah. He said there isn't a trace of anything in this slime. He threw everything but the kitchen sink at this stuff. We have nothing to go on with this slime."

Calleigh's eyebrows went straight up in astonishment. "He didn't find traces of ANYTHING in this slime?"

"That is correct. Did every test he could think of three times each. All he found were dirt, leaves, and twigs from the Everglades."

"So you think he might have better luck if he tries the national databanks?"

"That's the only place he hasn't checked."

Now it was Calleigh's phone to ring. It was Natalia. "Hey, what's up?"

"I just spoke to the doctor that treated Danielle Masters, our witness," Natalia answered. "He says that there are traces of some unknown substance found in her blood. He didn't like the looks of it and wanted to know if we knew anything about it."

"Do you have the results from the blood work?"

"It just came through the fax. If this stuff scared the doctor into giving us confidential work on a patient, we'd better be careful."

"Talk to Ryan about it. He's having trouble identifying the slime he found in the Glades. And I think we just found more of it in the Novaks' house. It might be a match to whatever is in that girl's blood," Calleigh ordered.

"Got it," Natalia replied and hung up.

"What's going on?" Eric asked.

"Doctors at Miami General found an unknown substance in that girl's blood," Calleigh answered grimly.

"The one who was unconscious?"

"Yeah. Whatever this stuff is scares the hell out of the doctors. They just faxed the girl's blood work results to the lab."

"Isn't that a violation of patient confidentiality?"

"I guess it isn't if the doctor willingly gave us permission to look at it," Calleigh replied dryly.

"What about the girl? Doesn't she get a say in this?" Eric asked.

"Can't say for sure. There's no record of her in the system. She just showed up out of the blue."

"Didn't Natalia say this girl is the daughter of that billionaire, Vlad Masters?"

Calleigh frowned. "Yeah but she told me that the girl is terrified of him. And as far as I know, Vlad Masters never got married."

Eric shrugged. "He could have adopted."

Calleigh laughed at that. "Then we would have heard all about it. He's one of the richest men in the world. The paparazzi would have been all over him."

Eric chuckled at his own theory. "Yeah. I guess you're right."

* * *

><p>This case was as puzzling as the <em>Space Odyssey<em> movies **(I'm sorry but I hated those movies! Storyline was way too confusing!)**. None of it made sense. How could green slime end up in both the Everglades and on Molly Novak's windowsill? More importantly, is this slime the same stuff that was found in Danielle's blood?

Natalia was pondering these questions as she walked towards Trace. Ryan was there waiting for any results from the national databanks.

"Hey," she greeted. "Got Danielle's blood work results from the doctor."

Ryan frowned. "Isn't that against patient confidentiality?"

"I don't think so. If doctors find something they don't like and think it poses as a possible threat, they have to tell someone," Natalia answered bluntly.

"Usually it's the CDC or the Health Department, right?"

Natalia shrugged and gave the results to Ryan **(I may watch this show a lot, but I'm not completely familiar with the do's and don'ts of patient confidentiality)**. After taking a moment to compare the doctor's results with his results he came to a conclusion: they match.

"That swamp slime and the stuff in that girl's blood match?" Ryan said completely grossed out.

Natalia was just as confused as Ryan was. "A bigger question is: how the hell did it get in that girl's blood to begin with? The nurse read me the report. There was not a scratch on her when we found her."

"Danielle Masters," Ryan muttered. "Just what on earth are you?"

A beep on the computer announced its findings. Ryan pulled up the results. One match: from a homicide at the Jarvis Convention Center in New York City. The substance was identified as ectoplasm.

* * *

><p><strong>Yes! A reference from <em>CSI Phantom<em>! There will be several references to the two previous stories in the future chapters. Hope that's okay!**

**Please review! Your comments are most appreciated!**


	5. Chapter 5

**I'm loving this story! I want to hear from you folks! Dani is going to do some exploring!  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 5<strong>

**Searching for Answers**

It was starting to get late. Dusk was approaching fast. Horatio knew that Danielle would refuse to stay in foster care while he and the rest of his team solved this case. _'She's a material witness to a kidnapping. She needs to be close by.'_ He can't just dump the poor girl into foster care where she can easily get lost in the system.

Horatio had to eliminate all of the guys on his team as babysitters since Danielle was still afraid of adults (aside from himself and Natalia by the looks of it right now). Calleigh always bragged about how many guns were in her house, so she's out of the question for obvious reasons. Natalia was a possible candidate. Danielle seemed fond of her but Horatio was afraid that the two would get too close and Natalia's feelings for the girl would cloud her judgment during the case.

He sighed. He had no choice. He pulled out his cell phone and dialed his sister-in-law, Yelina Salas's, number.

"Horatio?"

"Yelina," Horatio answered

"What's going on? Is it about the case?" Yelina had been doing undercover work for the lab for a few years now. Horatio could always count on her in a pinch.

"I have a young lady who is a witness to a kidnapping and she needs a place to stay till this whole thing blows over," Horatio started.

A chuckle could be heard from her end of the line. "You want me to look after her?"

Horatio cringed inwardly, feeling guilty about asking Yelina to watch over a witness again. The last time that happened the suspect drove by her house and shot out the windows, trying to kill the witness who was an eight-year-old boy. "If you don't want to I understand, given the circumstances of what happened last time…"

"Horatio, that was _years _ago," Yelina interrupted. "I'll be happy to watch over her for a few days. It's been quiet here since Ray Jr. left for college."

"If you're sure."

"I'll pick her up at around nine. Have her wait for me outside the front door."

"I really appreciate this," Horatio said gratefully.

"We're family. It's our job to watch each other's backs," Yelina replied. Horatio silently chuckled. The call ended. Before he could put his phone away it started ringing again. It was Ryan.

"Mr. Wolfe?"

"H, you need to take a look at something Natalia and I found regarding the slime we found in the Glades. It seems someone else has dealt with this stuff before…someone you know," Wolfe said.

"I'm on my way."

* * *

><p>Frank escorted Danielle to a bathroom (she claimed to have a stomachache) where she changed into Dani Phantom. He was expecting her to be in there for a while since she requested a magazine. Dani became invisible and explored the lab. There were so many gadgets and gizmos that she knew Danny's friend, Tucker, would act like a little kid in a candy store.<p>

Natalia was in one of the rooms she explored. Curiosity getting the better of her, Dani (still invisible) phased into the room to get a closer look. There was another man with Natalia. He was a little shorter than her and wore a shirt and tie underneath his white lab coat.

"Danielle Masters," he muttered. "Just what on earth are you?"

_'Uh oh! Are they getting suspicious of me?'_ She noticed some kind of graph on the large screen at the front of the room. The man pulled up the results. One match: from a homicide at the Jarvis Convention Center in New York City. The substance was identified as ectoplasm.

Dani paled at the sight of the results. _'Yep. They're definitely on to me! What am I going to do? I've worked so hard to keep it a secret! Should I leave before they figure it out?'_

Natalia suddenly shivered. "Ryan, is someone messing with the AC again?"

Ryan also shivered. "Most likely. Probably Walter trying to mess with us again."

"Pull up that file," Natalia requested. "We've got to know what we're dealing with."

Ryan did so. "Let's see. Homicide at the Jarvis Convention Center in NYC. Victim's name was Ramona Smith, age sixty-two," Ryan drawled on. Something caught his attention. "Cause of death: excessive brain damage?"

Natalia furrowed her eyebrows. "How can that be? That ectoplasm stuff was found in her system. How did it get there?"

"Says here someone injected it into her neck. It went straight to the brain; completely turned it into mush," Ryan answered grimly.

Natalia's face scrunched up. "Ew! Gross!"

"Guess who was in charge of the investigation?" Ryan asked Natalia. He pulled up a photo of a man who was in his 40s. Dani could feel a no-nonsense vibe coming from the man's photo. "Detective Mac Taylor."

Natalia blinked. "Mac Taylor? The same Mac Taylor who helped us chase Henry Darius through Miami a few years ago?"

"The very same," Ryan confirmed.

'_Mac Taylor. Where have I heard that name? It sounds familiar…'_

"I've got to call Horatio," Ryan stated. "He'll want to see this." He pulled out his phone and dialed Horatio's phone number.

"H, you need to take a look at something Natalia and I found regarding the slime we found in the Glades. It seems someone else has dealt with this stuff before…someone you know," Wolfe said. He then snapped the phone shut. "What else does that report say?"

Natalia looked through the file. She noticed a news article attachment. She clicked on it, pulling it up on the screen. "Looks like the crime lab there was attacked by a group of gangsters."

"It also says that four teenagers helped put a stop to it," Ryan noted. The headline caught Dani's attention: '**Teenage Heroes Save Crime Lab**.' Dani was shocked at the picture that was with the article. A picture of Mac Taylor, with members of the crime lab, was standing in front of the crime lab. In front of the group were four familiar faces Dani recognized. _'That's Danny, Tucker, and Sam! And that other girl must be Danny's sister, Jazz! Now I remember where I've heard that man's name! Danny told me about him last time I was in Amity Park! He knows Danny is half-ghost.'_

Natalia studied Danny's image in the picture. "That boy with the black hair looks a lot like Danielle Masters, doesn't he?"

Ryan squinted getting a closer look at the boy's image. "Now that you've mentioned it he does." He got a glimpse of the girl when Natalia brought her in earlier today. The resemblance was almost uncanny. "Did she say who her cousin was?"

"Yeah. His name is Danny Fenton. She didn't say where he was from though," Natalia said.

Ryan looked at the caption underneath the picture. "Natalia, get a load of this."

She read the caption, her eyes growing wider and wider with every word she read. "That's Danielle's cousin! That's Danny Fenton!"

"Says here his real name is Daniel Fenton. He and his friends are from Amity Park, Indiana," Ryan remarked. "You sure he and Danielle are not brother and sister?"

"Is this what you wanted to show me?" The two jumped as Horatio entered the room. Dani almost became visible in surprise. She didn't even hear him come in.

Realizing she's been in the room for too long, Dani quickly returned to the bathroom and changed back into Danielle. She flushed the toilet, grabbed the magazine, and left.

Frank was standing outside the bathroom door and stared her down. "What took you so long? Stomach feeling better?"

"Yeah, I'm fine but tell the other officers not to go in there for awhile," Danielle answered casually. "That's the last time I'm eating hospital food!"

"Yeah," said Frank as he escorted her back to the Interrogation Room. "Hospital food tends to do that to ya."

* * *

><p>Natalia noticed the change in temperature again but chose to ignore it. "Horatio, that boy is Danielle's cousin. His name is Danny Fenton," she said pointing to the picture.<p>

Horatio cocked his head to the side squinting his eyes to get a better look at the picture. "He looks almost exactly Danielle. Is that Detective Mac Taylor next to him?"

"Yes," Ryan confirmed. "It says that Daniel helped Mac save the New York Crime Lab from a group of gangsters. The leader was what they both described as a 'one seriously crazed up fruit loop.'"

"I see," Horatio said recognizing that term, "but tell me what you've found regarding the slime from the Everglades."

"We're getting to that," Ryan assured.

Natalia then cut in. "The doctors at Miami General just faxed me the results of Danielle's blood work and found an unknown substance in her blood. Ryan compared the results of the slime from the Everglades to the girl's blood and they're a match."

Horatio furrowed his eyebrows. "The slime is in her blood?"

"Strange but true," Ryan confirmed.

"And it's about to get stranger," Calleigh said coming into the room. Eric was following close behind her. "Eric and I found more of said slime at Molly Novak's house."

Horatio then looked at the floor. "So how does this slime connect with Mac Taylor?"

"There was a murder at the Jarvis Convention Center a few months ago. A woman was murdered in the woman's bathroom. Daniel's sister, Jasmine, found her. Someone killed the woman by injecting her with a substance known as ectoplasm," Ryan explained.

Eric laughed. "Ectoplasm? You mean the stuff from 'Ghostbusters'?"

Ryan glowered at him. "Ha ha. Very funny," he said sarcastically. "This stuff is entirely different from the movie."

Horatio was still confused. "If ectoplasm killed this woman in New York, how can Danielle have it in her system and not die from it?"

Eric shrugged. "Maybe she was born with it. Like kids born with cocaine in their system. Her body could be resistant to it."

"I think Eric is on to something," Calleigh said. "This ectoplasm stuff could be a new drug and the woman might have had an overdose?"

Ryan looked at her skeptically. "If it's a new drug then why is it glowing? I doubt a drug lord would want to sell something that glows in the dark."

"If it is a new drug then it's got to be the gooiest drug I've ever seen," Natalia added.

"Touché," Calleigh answered dryly.

While his teammates were swapping theories with each other, Horatio was pondering about some questions of his own. Mac Taylor has dealt with ectoplasm before. _'I wonder if he can shed some light on this.'_ He then remembered what Ryan said about the New York Crime Lab being attacked by what Mac and Daniel described as "one seriously crazed up fruit loop." A fruit loop. The redhead then remembered what Danielle said about her father.

_"Masters…you mean the billionaire, Vlad Masters?"_

_Danielle gritted her teeth. "Yeah. He's a fruit loop of a father! I'm never going back to him! Ever!"_

Could it be that Vlad Masters was the one that attacked Mac's lab? Horatio had to get answers about this girl and fast. He then excused himself and left the room. He needed to talk to Danielle but first…she needs to have something for dinner.

* * *

><p><strong>Nothing gets a kid talking like bribing them with food!<strong>

**If you're wondering why Calleigh and Eric think ectoplasm is a new form of drug, you have to remember that Miami deals with drug dealers all the time.**

**If you've read _CSI Phantom_ you'll remember that Mac's boss doesn't want a lot of information about ghosts released to the public. The part about the ectoplasm wouldn't be mentioned in the media. **

**Keep reviewing! I want your honest opinions! Thank you!**


	6. Chapter 6

**New chapter is here! FYI: The next chapter is going to be delayed due to midterms. I'll be done on Thursday. Until then...BEWARE! :P  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 6<strong>

**Filling in the Blanks**

"Thanks for buying me dinner, Horatio!" said Danielle as she finished off the last of her French Fries. The redhead offered to take her to a local burger joint before asking her questions regarding Vlad Masters.

"Danielle, does your cousin know your father?" Horatio asked as curiously as possible.

The girl swallowed her food and took a sip of her soda before answering his question. "Yeah, he does," she said bitterly. "Danny hates Vlad because…uh…Uncle Jack married Aunt Maddie. Vlad was – no, still is – in love with her. Vlad wants to kill Uncle Jack so he can marry Aunt Maddie and have Danny as his son."

"What about your mother?" asked Horatio. "Where is she in all this?"

That question caught Danielle off guard. Her face fell. "I never knew my mom."

Horatio nodded and moved on. "That alright. How is your father related to the Fentons?"

"I'm Danny's third cousin once removed. I don't know exactly how Vlad is related to the Fentons. Vlad doesn't like to talk about it," she answered. That was the best answer she was going to give Horatio. She knew that she and Danny weren't actual cousins but the term 'clone' sounded wrong to her. 'Cousin' made her sound more human.

"Alright. Has Danny ever talked about New York City?" asked Horatio.

Danielle nodded. "He, his sister, and his friends went to a convention called GhostCon a few months ago. His sister, Jazz, found a dead lady in the girl's bathroom."

Horatio nodded. "How did Jazz know that the lady was dead?"

"Danny's friend, Sam, said that the dead lady looked like a victim of Samara from the movie 'The Ring.'"

"Does the name Mac Taylor sound familiar to you?"

"Yeah! Danny talked about him all the time when I visited him last. I've never met the guy. He sounds really cool. I don't remember how they met though," Danielle replied. That was mostly true. She knew that Danny and Mac met at GhostCon. The reason they teamed up was thanks to Plasmius, but she couldn't tell Horatio that. He wouldn't believe her.

Horatio paid for the food and the two returned to the lab.

* * *

><p>Calleigh and Ryan went on a computer in the AudioVisual Lab to contact the New York Crime Lab. Eric went to collect some scrapings Dr. Loman found underneath Molly Novak's nails for DNA. Walter processed Molly's pajamas while Natalia went to the local ice cream parlor to buy Danielle that chocolate milkshake she promised her.

"Do you really think Taylor will be able to help us?" asked Calleigh skeptically.

"Detective Taylor is the only lead we have on this," said Ryan. "If anyone knows the stuff better than us, it's him."

He then activated the video connection and waited for the other line to answer. The person who answered was not who they thought it was.

"Can I help you, Miami?" A woman on the screen asked. She had short brown hair and a calm demeanor look on her face.

"Hi there," Calleigh greeted with a smile. "I'm CSI Calleigh Duquesne and this is CSI Ryan Wolfe of the Miami-Dade Crime Lab."

"I'm Detective Jo Danville. How can I help you?"

"Is Detective Mac Taylor in?" asked Wolfe. "We need to ask him about something."

"Detective Taylor is not in," Jo answered taking a sip of tea. "He's currently out of town, following a lead in a murder investigation. Although I don't know why he's still there since his teammates came back today…"

Both CSI's exchanged glances.

"Did they say what he was doing?" asked Ryan.

"All Dr. Hawkes said was that he was helping someone pay back a favor. He'll be back tomorrow."

"Is it alright if we ask where they went?" asked Calleigh.

"It depends," said Jo. "What is it that you want to ask Mac about?"

Calleigh glanced at Ryan, wondering if it's safe to tell Jo about the ectoplasm. He nodded.

"Are you familiar with a substance known as ectoplasm?" Calleigh asked.

Jo choked on the tea she was drinking. It took her a moment to recover. Ryan and Calleigh knew that they were asking the right people. "What about it?" Jo sputtered.

"It seems to be popping up everywhere in a kidnapping-homicide investigation," explained Ryan. "We found a puddle of it in the Everglades…"

"In the victim's house…" added Calleigh.

"And in the blood of a twelve-year-old girl who is an eyewitness," Ryan finished.

Jo raised an eyebrow. "Okay, that doesn't make sense. I thought ectoplasm was deadly when injected into the body. Is the girl ill or something?"

Ryan scratched his head. "See, that's the thing that is confusing us. Our eyewitness is out and about, healthy as a horse. We found her unconscious next to our victim in the Everglades."

This puzzled Jo even further. "So maybe the ectoplasm is the cause?"

"No. She collapsed due to malnourishment, dehydration and exhaustion. We believe that she's a runaway," Calleigh answered. Jo nodded and took another sip of her tea.

"Do you have any idea what this ectoplasm stuff is?" Ryan asked. Jo choked on her tea again. A response like that to happen twice in a row meant that the New York detective knew more than she was letting on.

"Do you know something that you're not telling us?" asked Calleigh suspiciously.

"W-Well, we were ordered to keep the details a secret from the public," Jo answered nervously.

"We pulled up the case file about the murder at the Jarvis Convention Center that Mac investigated," Ryan stated. "It's strange that this 'one seriously crazed up fruit loop' that attacked your lab was the same guy who ambushed Mac and a Mr. Daniel Fenton in an alleyway two blocks away from said lab."

Jo sighed in defeat. It wasn't often that she lost debates like these. She looked around the office to make sure no one is listening. "Alright. What I'm about to tell you is both too weird and too crazy to be true but it is. You must promise to NEVER speak of this to the public. If Chief Sinclair finds out I'm doing this it will be my badge."

Both CSI's could tell she wasn't kidding. "We promise we won't say anything to the general public," Calleigh vowed.

"Besides," Ryan added, "how crazy can it be?"

Jo smirked. "That ectoplasm comes from ghosts. And no, I do not mean from the movies. As much as I hate to admit it, ghosts do exist." Calleigh and Ryan's jaws dropped. Jo scoffed at them. "Quit looking at me like that! I told you it was too weird to be true!"

Ryan scoffed back. "You honestly believe that this slime is what _ghosts_ are made of?"

Jo pinched the bridge of her nose. "I seriously do not want to show you proof. Just take my word for it on Mac's behalf."

Calleigh changed the subject. "Okay, say we do believe you. How would you explain how a little girl got this stuff in her blood without it killing her?"

Jo smirked at them. "Your guess is as good as mine." She sighed, frustrated. "Alright. If you don't believe me, why don't you look up some articles from the Amity Park newspaper? That has numerous articles about ghosts."

Calleigh recognized the name of the city. "Amity Park. That's where Daniel Fenton and his friends are from," she said to Ryan.

Jo heard Calleigh say the boy's name. "You know who Daniel Fenton is?"

"Not really," Ryan answered. "All we know is that he and his friends and sister are from Amity Park, Indiana and they helped you save your lab a few months ago."

Jo smiled. "They're very nice kids. A colorful bunch actually. If it weren't for them, the lab would have been destroyed."

Ryan checked his watch for the time. Their shift was almost over. "Okay, listen Detective Danville, thank you for shedding a little light on ectoplasm. Could you tell Detective Taylor we called?"

Jo grinned. "Of course. He's more informative about this than I am. I'll have him contact you sometime tomorrow."

Calleigh smiled back. "Okay. Thanks, Jo!" The line ended. Calleigh then turned to Ryan. "Do you believe a word she said?"

"Not a word," said Ryan.

* * *

><p>Natalia returned to the lab with Danielle's chocolate milkshake. Horatio left her in the lounge this time, Frank still watching over her.<p>

"Hey, Frank," Natalia greeted.

"Hey. You gonna take over?" asked Frank.

"Yeah. You can go home," said Natalia. Frank then bid her good night.

"'Night, Natalia."

"Good night, Frank."

"Bye, Detective Tripp!" Danielle called. Her talking to him took Frank aback. She hardly spoke a word to him except for when she asked to use the restroom.

"Uh…bye?" Frank left to go home.

Natalia then sat down next to Danielle and gave her the milkshake. She had been drawing again. This time she was drawing a very pale man with a hooked nose wearing a black jacket and hat.

"Who is that?" asked Natalia giving Danielle her shake.

"I don't know," Danielle answered. She took a sip of her shake. "He was with the tattooed lady that kidnapped that Molly girl. This milkshake is delicious." She then turned her attention back to her little treat.

Natalia then took a closer look at the girl's drawing. The man looked familiar. Not someone she knew, maybe someone she's seen on TV. "Danielle?"

"Hmmm?"

"Is it alright if I hang on to this?" Natalia asked.

Danielle swallowed and raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"You said that this man was with the tattooed lady?"

"Uh-huh. It looked like he was the boss and she was his sidekick to me."

"I need to show this to Horatio," Natalia explained. "He'll be able to compare this drawing to someone's mug shot. Then we'll be able to identify the kidnapper."

"Is that a good thing?"

Natalia smiled. "Yes! It will get us one step closer to the kidnapper!"

Danielle's face lit up. "Really?"

Natalia chuckled. "Yes. Why didn't you mention this man before?"

Danielle shrugged. "I didn't remember him when I woke up. During the day memories of last night slowly came back to me."

"Did you hear the man's name?"

"No. No one ever said his name."

Horatio entered the room and tapped on the door. "Danielle, I need you come with me."

"Okay. Let me finish my milkshake and I'll be right there," said Danielle.

Natalia and Horatio then stepped aside away from Danielle's earshot.

"Did she say anything else regarding the kidnapping?" Horatio asked fingering his sunglasses.

"She says that there's a man who was with the tattooed woman," Natalia answered. "He looks like this." She handed Horatio Danielle's drawing of the bald man.

Horatio studied the drawing and looked Natalia straight in the eye. "Miss Boa Vista, this man escaped from federal prison a week ago."

* * *

><p><strong>HA! I loved Jo's reaction when ectoplasm was mentioned. Sure it might of been OOC but I couldn't resist! XP<strong>

**Guess where Mac is during this chapter? Go ahead! Guess! ;)**

**Thank you Zii Raevyn, jeanette9a, and Major Simi for your reviews! I love hearing from ya!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Yay! New chapter as promised! There will be events mentioned that occurred between the first and second stories that I was too lazy to write about. Keep that in mind. Enjoy!  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 7<strong>

**Sleepover **

Horatio walked Danielle outside the crime lab. His mind was abuzz. Frederich Isak Showenhower, also known as "Freakshow", escaped from federal prison under mysterious circumstances. He was arrested in Amity Park, Indiana for possession of stolen property and for trapping a group of people in a circus tent. Sure he escaped from the feds once before, but how he wound up back in prison is anyone's guess. He just…showed up. A rather high-tech soup thermos was the only clue **(hint, hint!)**.

Horatio read about Freakshow's latest escape in the newspaper last week. He had been following the manhunt ever since. For some reason, Freakshow's escapes fascinated the redhead. Horatio has dealt with prison breaks before but inmates always leave behind some kind of clue as to how they got out and where they're going. Freakshow didn't leave behind anything, no clues or the like. Even the Feds are scratching their heads at how he escaped. Only the Guys in White were talking but no one believed them. Horatio thought they were a waste of tax money.

The two left the building. It was five minutes till nine. Yelina should be showing up any minute now.

"Why are we outside?" asked Danielle.

"You're going to be staying with a very good friend of mine for a few days," Horatio explained. Danielle began to tense up a little. She'd only spent the day with Horatio, Natalia, and Frank (a little). She didn't want to stay with a total stranger.

"Can't I stay with you? Or Natalia?" she asked anxiously.

"Well, Danielle," Horatio started, "I…I don't think that would be a good idea."

"Why not?"

"Well, Natalia is working late tonight and many people would get the wrong idea if you stayed with me."

The girl blinked. "'Get the wrong idea'? What do you mean by that?" Danielle asked obliviously. Obviously no one bothered to talk to her about the Birds and the Bees yet.

Horatio chuckled and patted her head. "You'll find out when you're older."

She dropped the subject. "Who is your friend?"

"She is my sister-in-law. Her name is Yelina Salas," Horatio answered.

Danielle still wasn't convinced she wanted to go with this lady. "Is she nice?"

The redhead nodded. "She's very nice. She'll be watching over you for a few days. Is that okay?"

_'If Horatio trusts this lady, I guess it's okay to go with her.'_ She nodded.

A car pulled up in front of the two. They approached it. A woman with olive skin and curly hair was in the driver's seat. She smiled at them.

"Evening, Horatio."

"Good evening, Yelina," he greeted back. "Danielle, this is Yelina Salas. Yelina, this is Danielle Masters." The girl waved to Yelina shyly.

The woman smiled. "Climb in, Danielle. I'll take you to my house. You'll be safe there." The girl reluctantly got in the backseat and buckled up.

Horatio walked over to Yelina's side of the car and leaned in. "Have you been brought up to speed?" he whispered.

"Yes. I'm aware of her blood condition," she whispered back. "Has she been having any problems since she was released from the hospital?"

"No, she seems pretty healthy but keep an eye on her as a precaution. If anything happens, call me," Horatio said.

Yelina scoffed. "Don't I always?" She turned to the backseat. "Ready to go, Danielle?"

Danielle nodded. "Good night, Horatio! Thanks again for dinner."

"No problem, sweetie," Horatio replied.

"Tell Natalia I said thank you for the milkshake."

"I will." He then let the car drive away.

* * *

><p>Yelina Salas looked at Danielle through the rearview mirror. The girl looked pretty dirty from top to bottom. She looked like she could use a bath.<p>

"When we get to my house, do you want to take a bath or a shower?" Yelina asked trying to initiate a conversation with the girl.

"A shower sounds nice, yes," Danielle replied. She admits that she could use a good scrubbing. Her clothes could use a good wash too.

"I'll give you one of my son's large t-shirts as a nightie. Is that okay?" asked Yelina.

"Sure."

The rest of the car ride was driven in silence. Eventually they arrived at Yelina's house. It was a simple house. Nothing special like Danny's house that had an Ops Center on the roof.

"It's smaller than my cousin's," Danielle commented.

Yelina chuckled. "Yes it is. Only my son and I live here. He's away at college right now. You'll be sleeping in his room."

The two entered the house. Danielle got a Brazilian vibe from this place. A map of South America was displayed in the hallway towards the bedroom. Several pictures hung on the wall. Most of them displayed Yelina and her son.

"Is that your son?"

"Yes. His name is Raymond Caine, Jr.," Yelina answered.

"Junior? What happened to Ray Sr.?"

Yelina hesitated and then sighed. "He…was murdered…in Brazil. He was…trying to stop…a drug lord. Horatio found him…and killed him. Raymond and Horatio were brothers."

This shocked the little ghost girl. Horatio didn't seem like the kind of person to do something like that. He seemed too nice to do something like that. Danielle dropped the touchy subject for Yelina's sake.

Danielle saw a picture of a younger Ray Jr. with Horatio. Ray was proudly holding a fish in front of the camera.

"Ray is Horatio's nephew?"

"Yes. That was taken during a fishing trip Ray and Horatio went on. Ray wanted to spend time with his uncle. So they agreed that they would go on a fishing trip. They had fish tacos from the fish they caught that night," Yelina explained.

"Cool! Have they ever been to a NASA space center?" asked Danielle. "I heard there was one here in Florida. I once went to Space Center Houston. It's like a space museum for kids. It's located near the Johnson Space Center. It was really cool!"

Yelina chuckled. "You like outer space?"

"Yeah. I guess you can say my cousin got me into it."

Danielle eventually found the bathroom. Yelina instructed her to leave her clothes outside the bathroom door. Yelina would leave her a large t-shirt for her to wear for pajamas. The shower felt like Danielle was showering at a spa. _'A hot shower. It's been days. Maybe this city isn't so bad after all. I wonder if I can stay here for awhile.'_ She stepped out, clean as a whistle **(remember, she travels a lot. How many chances does she get to bathe?)**. She noticed that a large t-shirt was folded neatly on the bathroom counter with a fresh toothbrush and toothpaste. She dried off and got dressed. To her delight, it was a Dumpty Humpty shirt. She brushed her teeth, hung up her towel, and went to Ray's room.

Danielle plopped on the bed, deep in thought. She realized that she's been opening up to Horatio and his team. She hasn't really trusted adults since Vlad tried to destroy her twice. How could she trust these people whom she had only known for only a day? What makes them so special that opening up to them is like opening a birthday card? Is it because they're cops and they're supposed to be nicer to kids? Natalia seemed to like her when she met her at the hospital. Danielle wasn't sure about Frank. He seemed a little too gruff and stern for her liking. Horatio was completely different. Danielle noticed that the redheaded cop rarely made eye contact with his co-workers. He only made eye contact with Danielle. _'Does he only do that when he's around kids?'_ She could see some sort of sadness in Horatio's blue eyes whenever the two spoke to each other. _'I wonder what's bothering him? Why does he always look so sad?'_

Her thoughts then went to her last visit with Danny. He told her about his amazing adventure in New York City. He showed her the medal that was given to him in the mail. It looked like the kind of medal that you can pin to your uniform. Danny also talked a lot about Detective Mac Taylor:

_"He may seem intimidating at first, but he's actually pretty cool once you get to know him. Just don't cross him when he's in a bad mood. Getting him mad is a very stupid thing to do. _

_You should have seen him fight Vlad! It was like watching a soldier in hand-to-hand combat! Like in the movies!"_

Danielle remembered seeing Mac's picture in the lab. Yes, he did look pretty intimidating but if Danny trusted him, he can't be that bad. Danielle's eyes started to get heavy while she was pondering with her thoughts. Eventually she fell asleep.

Yelina came in a short time later and saw Danielle sleeping soundly on top of the bed. Yelina smiled at the peaceful look on the sleeping girl's face. She'd been through an awful lot all day. The woman admired the twelve-year-old's courage. She tucked Danielle under the covers, turned off the light, and silently shut the door.

* * *

><p>At around four in the morning Danielle was woken up by a blood-curdling scream outside. She groggily got out of bed and went to the window. <em>'Please be a drunk person.'<em> Her ghost sense going off woke her right up. She looked out the window and saw three green vultures floating overhead. One of them was carrying a girl in his talons.

Danielle changed into Dani Phantom and phased out of the window. She became invisible and hid in a tree as she listened to the three ghostly birds argue amongst themselves.

"Will you quit badgering me? This girl is the one," squawked the Leader who was holding the struggling girl.

"That is not the girl! This one is too fat!" the Second vulture argued. In reality, the girl was actually normal weight.

"This girl has black hair and blue eyes! Just like the bald man said!" the Leader shouted.

"She does not have blue eyes!" argued the Third vulture. "The light's playing tricks on you. This one's eyes are green!"

"They are not!" the Leader scowled.

"Yes, they are!" the girl yelled.

"Ha! See? Told you we had the wrong one!" the Second exclaimed victoriously.

"Then how about you put her down?" Dani asked becoming visible in front of them.

"Say, isn't that the girl whom we are looking for?" asked the Second.

"I thought she was keeping a low profile," the Third added. "Plus she doesn't match the description."

Dani sneered at them. "Kind of hard to keep a low profile when you're keeping me up with your squawking."

The girl started whimpering. "Please help me!" she pleaded. Dani became intangible and grabbed the girl making her intangible too. Dani pulled the girl from the Leader's talons and lowered her to the ground.

"Hide! And don't come out until I say so!" Dani ordered. The girl did so.

Dani then turned her attention to the Vultures. She fired a ghost ray at them. They dodged. They then started throwing "Missed me!" taunts at the ghost girl. Dani then fired multiple disks of ecto-energy from her hands and feet, catching them off guard. Three direct hits. The birds then quickly fled before she could do anything else.

"If I ever see any of you around here again one of you will be my next Thanksgiving dinner!" Dani shouted to them as they flew off. She then looked around to see if the coast was clear. She then changed back into Danielle. "It's alright!" She called to the girl, wherever she was. "They're gone!"

The girl then slowly came out of her hiding place behind some garbage cans next to the house. She looked around. "W-Where's that black and white girl?"

"Uh…she chased them off. I don't know where she went. I got here as she was leaving," Danielle fibbed. "I heard a scream and I went to investigate. You need to get home. Where do you live?"

"N-Next door."

"Alright. If you're not hurt, I guess I'll go back to bed," Danielle yawned. The two girls parted ways.

"Danielle?" Yelina was in a bathrobe standing in the front doorway. "What are you doing out here?"

"I heard someone screaming and it woke me up," Danielle said. "I went to investigate but it was just a cat." Danielle felt bad for lying to Yelina but she doubted that Yelina would believe that three talking green vultures tried to kidnap another girl.

Yelina yawned and led Danielle back inside. "Alright. We'll talk about this in the morning. Let's get back to bed."

* * *

><p><strong>Ha! I love those idiotic vultures! Don't forget to review!<br>**

**Remember when you were kids you would wear a big t-shirt as pajamas? Ahh...good times!**

**I didn't want this story to get dull so I put in some Dani action!**

**Thank you, Zii Raevyn! You guessed correctly. Mac is currently with Danny and the rest of the gang at the moment. Jo said that his teammates came back today! Mac wouldn't return until the next day after Pandora's party!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Okay for some reason the website was acting weird. I was unable to get story alert e-mails...weird. Anyway, here's the next chapter. Make sure to review the previous chapter too.  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 8<strong>

**Exploring the Lab**

Horatio arrived at the lab early the next morning. He met up with Calleigh, who was having a cup of coffee while reading the morning paper, in the lounge.

"Morning, Sleepyhead!" Calleigh greeted.

"Good morning, ma'am."

"I'm guessing you're wondering if Ryan and I were able to contact the New York Crime Lab," said Calleigh cutting to the chase.

"Were you?"

"Yes and no. We were able to contact them but Detective Taylor was not in. He's in Amity Park, Indiana following a lead in a murder investigation. He should be back in New York sometime today."

"Let me know when he's in," Horatio stated. "What did you find out yesterday?"

"According to New York Detective Jo Danville, the ectoplasm is the essence of – can you believe this? – ghosts. Don't look at me like that!" Horatio was giving the Southern beauty an "Are-you-kidding-me?" look. "Anyway, we have to keep this as quiet as possible. Apparently the general public is not familiar about this not-so-fictional slime."

"Okay. I want you and Walter to find some articles about Amity Park. The name of that city keeps popping up in this investigation. I want to know what is so special about this place."

Calleigh smiled. "You got it, H."

As she left the lounge, Horatio's cell phone started ringing. Caller ID said it was Yelina.

* * *

><p>Yelina woke up early the next morning wondering what happened last night. There was NO way that a cat could make that much racket. The screaming she heard sounded 100% human too. Whatever Danielle's reasons were, Yelina knew that the girl was hiding something.<p>

Danielle came into the kitchen. "Good morning, Yelina," she yawned.

"Good morning, Danielle," Yelina greeted. "What would you like for breakfast?"

"Just cereal."

As Danielle was munching on her breakfast, Yelina excused herself to make a phone call…to Horatio.

A few rings and Horatio answered the phone. "Yelina?"

"Horatio. Something happened last night that has made me believe that the girl is hiding something from us."

"What happened?"

"Around four in the morning I woke up to the sound of screaming from next door. There was a ruckus outside, like there was a fight. I went to check on Danielle and she was gone. Then it got quiet. When I went outside to look for her, she was standing outside. She said that she heard a cat but you and I both know that a cat cannot make that much noise at that hour."

There was a long pause before Horatio started talking again. "Alright, bring Danielle back in. I'll send Ryan and Natalia to your neighbor's house and see what they find."

The call ended. Yelina then went back to sit with Danielle.

"Danielle?" The girl looked up. "Horatio wants you to come back to the crime lab. Are you up for it?"

Danielle's face lit up. "Yeah! I want to go back! I want to explore the place!"

"Before you get ready, could you tell me what really happened last night?"

"It's just what I told you last night," Danielle answered. "I heard a cat."

Yelina decided against pushing the issue further (and antagonizing herself from the girl) and let Danielle get dressed. Since Danielle's clothes were still in the wash, Yelina lent her some of Ray's old clothes she saved. Danielle wound up wearing another Dumpty Humpty t-shirt and camo shorts. She didn't like the fact that she was wearing boy's clothing and when Yelina said that Ray Jr. was her only child, Danielle just pouted. At least she still had her blue shoes. She'd have to go without her red hat though; it's also in the wash.

Yelina dropped Danielle off at the crime lab with a promise that she'll buy the girl some clothes. Danielle tried to object, saying she didn't have to, but Yelina insisted. When the woman drove off, Danielle walked into the lab. Not many people have shown up yet. Seeing that Horatio wasn't around yet, Danielle decided to explore the lab.

When she stepped off the elevator, she jaw dropped at how big the lab really was. It was bigger than she thought. She looked around, wondering which room to explore first. She saw a Cuban man walking into one of the rooms, putting on a lab coat.

Danielle walked over to his workstation. "What'cha doin'?"

The man jumped. When he saw who was talking to him he calmed down and gave her a little smile. "I'm processing DNA from some scrapings Dr. Loman found underneath Molly Novak's fingernails. You're Danielle Masters, aren't you?"

"Uh-huh!" Danielle said nodding her head. "And you must be…" she squinted at the name sewn on the man's lab coat, "CSI E. Delko."

Delko chuckled. "It's CSI Eric Delko. What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be with Horatio?"

"I'm exploring the lab while I'm looking for him," Danielle explained. "I hope I'm not getting in your way."

"Well, the lab is not really a place for little kids."

Danielle frowned. "Hey! I'm not THAT little!" She may have the body and mind of a twelve-year-old girl, but her biological age is over a year old. She is a clone after all.

A blonde woman stepped off the elevator and walked toward the locker room. Danielle noticed that Eric was staring at her.

She giggled. "I know that look. That's the same longing puppy-dog eyed look my cousin Danny gives to his friend Sam when she isn't looking!"

Eric quickly snapped back to reality. "It's nothing," he mumbled blushing.

Danielle continued to giggle. "You like her, don't you?"

Eric turned a darker shade of red. "We are dating but right now…it's kind of rocky."

The girl's face fell. "Awww... What happened? Did one of you screw up?"

Eric sighed. "Yeah, I did. I wasn't honest with her. I had so many secrets I kept from her. As much as I wanted to tell her, I couldn't because…I don't know. I guess I didn't want her to worry."

"Have you tried explaining why you did whatever you did? I'm sure she'll understand."

"I've been trying to regain her trust," Eric said sadly, "but it hasn't been easy."

"Maybe you should go have coffee with her," Danielle suggested. "It works on TV."

Eric chuckled. "I guess. Now, I need to work. You go explore and stay out of trouble." Danielle pouted and left the room. Curious about the blond woman that Eric spoke fondly of, Danielle went towards the locker room.

* * *

><p>"You have a confirmed sighting?" asked Freakshow. The Vultures came back exhausted from the fight with Dani.<p>

"Yeah, we saw her," the Leader fumed. "I thought you said that she was keeping a low profile. She looked like the young lady in the picture you gave to your tattooed friend." Lydia looked up at the mentioning of herself.

Freakshow sighed in frustration. "Alright. You three retrieve the girl now. Better to do it sooner rather than later."

"WHAT?" squawked the Third. "In broad daylight? You've been spending too much time in this swamp."

"Besides, what if there are witnesses?" asked the Second.

"No one is home during the day. Surly you know that," Freakshow said.

"Is he forgetting today is Sunday?" the Second asked the Leader who shrugged.

"Quit your muttering and bring me that girl!" barked Freakshow. The Vultures flew off back toward Miami.

* * *

><p>Danielle followed the blonde woman into the locker room. She was curious about the woman and Eric's infatuation with her. Besides, Danielle wanted to see if she could help Eric get back on track with his relationship with this woman.<p>

"Excuse me?"

The woman looked up and smiled. "Hi there! You must be Danielle Masters. I'm Calleigh Duquesne."

The two girls shook hands.

"Eric and I saw you get off the elevator," Danielle stated.

"Did you now?"

"Mmm hmm! He was looking at you like a lovesick puppy," Danielle said feigning innocence.

Calleigh laughed. "Yeah. That sounds like Eric alright." She sighed. "He's a really great guy."

Danielle noticed that she had that same look Eric had in the lab. _'So the feeling's mutual…'_ Obviously the two were crazy about each other.

Danielle continued with the innocent act. "Eric said that he screwed up when you guys were dating. What happened?"

Calleigh sighed again. "It's a long, complicated story. I don't think you'll be able to understand it."

Danielle's face fell. "Oh. Are you two going to break up?"

"I don't really know, Danielle. He's been trying to regain my trust. We'll just have to wait and see." With that, Calleigh got up and left the locker room.

"Augh! I wanted to know more about them!" she fumed. She became invisible and followed Calleigh.

* * *

><p>Calleigh entered the AudioVisual Lab where a tall African American man was waiting for her. "Hey Walter!"

Walter Simmons grinned at her. "Hey Calleigh! What's going on?"

"Oh, just getting to know the witness," she replied casually.

"The witness? You mean Danielle Masters?"

"Yeah, her. Find anything out about her?"

"That's the problem," said Walter. "I've got nothing on this girl. I checked every one of Vlad Masters's biographies and none of them mention him adopting a twelve-year-old girl. I ran her name through Missing and Exploited Children. Nothing! There is literally no record of this girl."

"It's like she appeared out of thin air," Calleigh muttered grimly. She then turned her attention to the task at hand. "So, have you found anything about Amity Park, Indiana?"

Walter chuckled. "Wolfe would probably wet himself if he went to this place. Amity Park has been dubbed 'Ghost City, USA.' It is the most haunted city in the country."

Calleigh furrowed her eyebrows. "If it's so famous, how come I've never heard of it?"

"Probably because it's one of those towns that likes to keep a low profile from the national media," Walter assumed. "Although it has been getting _some_ attention lately."

"How's that?"

"Over a year ago, some teenager with white hair held the previous mayor of Amity Park hostage. Several weeks later that same kid was caught stealing jewelry."

"Yikes! Sounds like this kid has some serious issues," said Calleigh.

"I know but one day, the kid suddenly turns over a new leaf. Next thing everyone knows, the town is proclaiming this kid a hero!" Walter exclaimed.

"Let me guess: this kid protects the town from 'ghosts,'" Calleigh assumed rather sarcastically.

"That's what these articles say."

"What's the name of the kid?"

Walter typed on the keyboard and a picture of a teenage boy appeared on the screen. He didn't look like any normal teenager Calleigh or Walter have seen. The boy had snow-white hair and neon green eyes. He wore a black jumpsuit with white gloves, boots, belt, and collar. A DP insignia completed the outfit.

"The kid goes by the name Danny Phantom. Hmmm…catchy," said Walter.

Calleigh stared at the picture of Phantom. "You know Horatio told me that Danielle was drawing a picture of this kid yesterday. She also drew a female version of Danny Phantom. I believe Danielle called her Dani Phantom…with an 'i'."

Walter shrugged. "Maybe Phantom rescued Danielle when she was visiting her cousin and she got one of those celebrity crushes? What was her cousin's name? Danny Fenton?"

Calleigh's eyes widened. "Oh my God! Danielle said that Phantom had a cousin who had the same name. Horatio showed me those drawings. The two Phantoms looked almost exactly alike."

Walter was lost. "I'm confused."

"I saw a picture of the Fenton boy yesterday. He looks almost exactly like Danielle. That can't be a coincidence. Did it ever occur to you that Danielle's cousin happens to be named Danny Fenton?" she asked.

"Yeah…I knew that already. I just told you," said Walter who still had no idea what Calleigh was talking about.

"Think about it, Walter. Danny _Fenton_? Danny _Phantom_? Notice the similarities?"

Walter then went through the names in his mind. "Yeah. They kind of do. It's probably just a coincidence though. Maybe even part of a child's fantasy."

"Maybe so," said Calleigh, "but Horatio probably wants to hear about this."

Walter got a text message and frowned. "That's going to have to wait, Calleigh. Ryan and Natalia are in trouble."

* * *

><p><strong>Yeah! Not much to say about this chapter. I don't know about you folks, but I'm a CalleighXEric fan! I always knew those two would eventually get together!<strong>

**Keep those reviews coming! They are greatly appreciated! **


	9. Chapter 9

**Sweet! A new chapter! This one is a little shorter than the others. The next one will be its usual length, I promise! Enjoy!  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 9<strong>

**The Birds**

Frank was interviewing the parents of the missing girls. Their stories all sounded the same. Their daughters simply disappeared from their bedrooms. The only clue left behind was a puddle of ectoplasm. Horatio would have joined Frank but the redhead said he had a hunch about the kidnapper's identity.

Horatio looked through every article on the Internet about Freakshow. The drawing Danielle drew looked exactly like the man. Somehow Freakshow was caught in a boxcar full of stolen jewelry and valuables in Amity Park, Indiana and was arrested. Why does this city keep popping up in this investigation? The sooner Calleigh and Walter find information about this town, the sooner he can close this case.

Horatio's phone started ringing. It was Walter.

"Walter?"

"Horatio, Calleigh and I are going to have to put our research on hold!"

"Explain," Horatio ordered concerned with the worried tone in Walter's voice.

"I just got a text from Wolfe. He and Natalia are in trouble!"

Horatio's blood froze. Ryan and Natalia were at Yelina's neighbor's house right now. His concern fell not just on his teammates but also on Yelina and her neighbors.

"Alright. Get going! I'll meet you there soon," Horatio ordered. He pulled Frank from Interrogations and the two got in Frank's patrol car and raced off to Yelina's before it was too late.

* * *

><p>After having a quick cup of coffee at Yelina's house, Natalia and Ryan went next door to see what happened last night. Yelina told them Danielle's story about what happened and they agreed that it was definitely unusual.<p>

"Natalia," Ryan called. She walked over to Ryan who was standing over another puddle of ectoplasm in the grass. "More ectoplasm. The kidnapper was here."

"Oh my God," Natalia gasped. "Do you think the kidnapper is after Danielle?"

Ryan gave her a look. "What makes you think the kidnapper is after this little girl?"

"Well, for the past three days girls with black hair and blue eyes have been disappearing from their bedrooms. And we happen to find two girls with the same characteristics in the Everglades," Natalia explained matter-of-factly.

Ryan nodded. "That makes sense. Sounds like the kidnapper is looking for one kind of girl but doesn't know which one is her. The question is why he kidnaps the wrong girls anyway?"

Natalia shrugged. "Probably to keep them quiet. They get a good look at him, he takes them with him so they won't go to the cops."

Ryan nodded. It made sense. He kept that in the back of his mind as a possible theory. The two CSI's made their way to the neighbor's house. They rang the doorbell. The door opened a little, due to a chain lock, and a woman answered.

"Can I help you?"

"Are you Mary Maxwell?" asked Ryan.

"Yes. Who are you?"

Ryan and Natalia flashed their badges. "We're with the police. We were told that someone tried to abduct your daughter last night?"

Mary shut the door, removed the chain, and opened the door again. She appeared to be in her mid-30s. She had tan skin, black hair and hazel eyes. "Yes. My daughter said someone tried to abduct her last night. Personally, I think she was either sleepwalking or having a nightmare but she insisted that it happened."

"Where is she?" asked Natalia. "We would like to speak with her. She might know something regarding these disappearances lately."

"She's in her room. Come in."

Mary guided Natalia to her daughter's room. Ryan was going to question the mother and see if she saw anything. Natalia entered the room and saw an eleven-year-old girl sitting on her bed reading. The CSI was shocked that the girl looked nothing like the others. This girl had dark brown hair and green eyes. _'I guess it makes sense that someone would try to kidnap her. With the lack of light, anyone would assume that she had black hair and blue eyes.'_

"Zoey?" the mother called. The girl looked up. "The police want to talk to you about last night."

The girl nodded. "Okay."

Mary turned to leave. "If you need anything, let me know."

Natalia nodded. When Mary left the CSI slowly approached the girl. "So, your name is Zoey?"

The girl nodded.

"My name is Natalia. Can you tell me what happened last night?"

"I was sleeping and I woke up when the room suddenly got really cold. And I was under the covers! There were some strange green birds floating in my room. One of them grabbed me with his feet and…"

"And?" Natalia pressed.

"When the bird grabbed me, I felt tingly all over. And then they pulled me out of bed and flew outside," said Zoey. Natalia was bewildered at the story. _'Green birds? Does she mean parrots? Since when do parrots abduct young girls in the dead of night?'_

"Then…I started screaming, hoping my mom and dad or Ms. Salas next door might hear me. Ms. Salas is a cop," Zoey explained.

Natalia nodded. "That's right, she is. She's also a very good friend of mine."

"The birds then start…talking. Arguing that I wasn't the right one. I remember them saying I was supposed to have blue eyes. My eyes are green.

"Then, a weird girl literally appeared out of thin air. She was flying like those birds. She wanted them to put me down. When they wouldn't, she grabbed me and I felt tingly again. Next thing I knew I was on the ground and the girl was fighting the birds off. She told me to hide and I did."

This was the weirdest story Natalia has ever heard! _'She must have had a bad dream!'_ Since when do kids fly?

Playing along with the story, Natalia pressed forward. "What did this girl look like?"

"She had white hair and glowing green eyes. And she wore a black and white outfit. I also saw something on her chest. It looked like a grey D with a black P inside of it," Zoey described. "She looked around my age."

Strange. That didn't sound like any kid Zoey's age. Natalia suddenly shivered. "Is it always this cold in here?"

"Only when we are around," a voice replied.

Natalia and Zoey looked up and saw three green vultures phase through the ceiling. _'Okay. NOW I believe her story!'_ Natalia whipped out her gun and aimed it at them. Zoey screamed and hid under her covers. "It's them! They're back!"

"Okay, is the young lady under the covers the one?" asked the Leader. "Or is it this young lady standing right in front of us?"

"How should I know?" the Second retorted. "You're the one who claims to have the best eyesight!"

"Says the one who is wearing glasses for the blind!" the Leader countered.

"Forget about that!" squawked the Third. "Let's just grab this one and get out of here!"

"We can't grab this one!" exclaimed the Second. "She's way too tall!"

At this point, Natalia started lowering her weapon. This is the strangest argument she's ever witnessed! She thought about calling Animal Control but how are they going to catch three green vultures that can fly through walls? She didn't think she or the girl were in any imminent danger at the moment…as long as the birds kept arguing amongst themselves.

"Natalia? What was that – WHAT THE HELL!" Ryan came in and pulled out his gun when he saw the intruders.

"Oh, great," the Third complained, "now we have to take him with us too!"

"I told you we should have taken her and left!" the Leader exclaimed.

"Natalia? Where's Zoey?" asked Ryan urgently. "Is she safe?"

"Yeah. She's fine," assured Natalia not taking her eyes off of the birds. She had her weapon out and aimed at the Vultures.

"We are not taking all three of them with us!" stated the Leader.

"I think we should," argued the Second. "They've seen us! Freakshow said to take anyone who sees us!"

"If that's the case, then we would have kidnapped half of Miami by now," the Leader argued back. Natalia saw out of the corner of her eye that Ryan used a free hand to pull out his cell phone and most likely to text someone on the team for help.

* * *

><p>Calleigh and Walter raced down to the garage and hopped into the nearest Hummer not knowing that they had an invisible stowaway with them. Danielle phased into the backseat of the Hummer. She was in the room (invisible) when Walter got the SOS text from Natalia and Ryan. When Walter called Horatio about it, she immediately became concerned for Natalia. If this was a ghost problem, she had to be there to fight them. Horatio and the others wouldn't stand a chance against these guys. Danny was not here to help. Danielle was on her own in this fight.<p>

* * *

><p><strong>Danielle's first solo fight! Will she win? <strong>

**It's quite clear at this point that she trusts Natalia, Horatio, and Yelina a lot. It's only natural that she goes after them!**

**Keep those reviews coming!**

**By the way: anyone have an account on deviantart? I'm no artist but I like looking at people's drawings of my favorite animes, TV shows, cartoons, etc.  
><strong>


	10. Chapter 10

**Danielle's first solo battle! How is she going to explain this to the CSI's? Read and find out!  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 10<strong>

**Out of the Bag**

Danielle sat on the floor of the Hummer invisible. It was pretty hard to keep up since Calleigh was driving like a mad woman! The sirens heard outside the car made the ride way shorter than last time. It wasn't long before the Hummer was outside of Yelina's house. Frank's patrol car was already parked outside. Calleigh and Walter pulled out their guns and stormed into the Maxwells' house. Danielle was having second thoughts about this but her ghost sense told her otherwise. She had to do it.

* * *

><p>The three Vultures heard sirens outside of the house and groaned.<p>

"Fine! Let's just grab the tall one and the one on the bed and get out of here!" ordered the Leader. He swooped down towards Natalia and picked her up in his talons. The Second turned his feet intangible and grabbed Zoey from under the covers. The girl started screaming.

"Let me go!"

"Natalia!" screamed Ryan. He tried to aim his gun at the birds but with Natalia and Zoey in the line of fire, it was too risky.

"Put me down, you freaks of nature!" Natalia yelled.

The Third Vulture sighed. "Why can't they call us 'Ecto-Americans'?"

The three then phased out of the room and into the backyard.

"NATALIA!" Ryan screamed. He ran toward the back door. Frank had already arrived.

"Wolfe! What the hell are these things? And why the hell are they carrying Natalia and a little girl?" yelled Frank. Natalia struggled to get free but Zoey, at this time, passed out (including her mother, who saw the whole thing, inside the house).

Horatio came out through the back door, his gun raised toward the birds. Calleigh and Walter were close behind him.

"Hey!" cried the Third. "What gives? They're just making our job harder and harder!"

"I know," replied the Second. "I knew we should have come back later tonight."

The Third then looked at Natalia who was still struggling in the Leader's talons. "Hey! She looks nothing like the Ghost Girl!"

The Leader looked at Natalia. "What the? Why am I carrying a human woman?"

The Second laughed. "Hahaha! See? Told you she wasn't the right one!"

Walter's eyebrows shot straight up. "Are those birds _talking_?"

Frank shot at the ground to get their attention. "MIAMI-DADE POLICE! PUT THE OFFICER DOWN NOW!"

The Leader then smacked the Third with his wing. "You dunder head! You made me abduct an officer of the police department!"

"How was I supposed to know?"

"HEY!" a voice shouted. Frank, Ryan, Walter, Calleigh and Horatio turned and saw Danielle walking towards them. "Let them go!"

"Danielle?" Horatio said surprised. "What are you doing here?"

The girl looked at the lieutenant with determination. "I came here to help."

"Danielle, sweetie, this is far too dangerous for you. Get inside and wait there," Horatio said sternly.

"Forget it," Danielle said just as sternly. "I know what those things are and I know how to beat them." A ring of light then appeared around Danielle's waist. As it split in two, someone totally different replaced Danielle's appearance: black hair became white, blue eyes became neon green, Ray Jr.'s clothes were replaced with a black and white outfit complete with a grey DP insignia.

Dani launched herself into the air and kicked the Second Vulture causing him to drop the unconscious Zoey Maxwell. Dani caught her before she hit the ground and put her on the patio. Dani then went back to the Vultures to rescue Natalia.

"I'll tell you one more time. Put Natalia down!" Dani ordered. She charged at the birds. She grabbed at the Third's feet and swung him around and let him go causing him to hit the Second. She threw a disk of ecto-energy at them, making them fly away. She turned her attention to the Leader.

"Boo."

The Leader screamed and dropped Natalia. He then flew off with his other comrades. Dani caught the falling CSI by the shirt collar before she hit the ground. She lowered her gently to the ground.

"Are you okay, Natalia?" asked Dani.

Natalia slowly backed away from the girl, eyes wide with fright. "D-D-D-Danielle? Is that you?"

Dani became worried about Natalia's reaction. "Yeah. It's me. Please don't be scared! I'd never hurt you or anyone on your team!" she assured her.

"H-H-How did this…happen?" asked Natalia trying to compose herself.

"Well…"

"Danielle?" Dani turned to Horatio in shock. She completely forgot that he was there! _'The cat's out of the bag now!' _He put his gun away and slowly approached the girl. Ryan went to check on Zoey while Walter went to check on her mother. Calleigh and Frank still had their guns aimed at the ghost girl.

"Horatio, I…" Dani tried to explain. How was she going to explain this to Horatio and the others? She sighed and lowered her head in shame. "I'm sorry…" She started to float away.

"Danielle. Stay right where you are," Horatio said sternly. Even Dani knew not to argue with someone who uses that tone of voice. She landed back on the ground. Horatio took a step closer to the girl. He knelt to her eye level. He cocked his head and squinted. "You're Dani Phantom, aren't you? You look exactly like your drawing from yesterday." Dani nodded. Horatio smiled at the ghost girl. "It's alright. I won't hurt you," he said gently. He gently rested his hand on her shoulder reassuringly. He turned his head in Frank's direction. "Frank, Calleigh, it's alright. She won't hurt us." Frank and Calleigh relaxed and put their guns away.

Dani's eyes started misting again. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to hide this from you! I was just scared that's all! Please don't tell anyone!"

Horatio nodded and gave her a gentle smile. "It's alright, sweetie. You're not in trouble. We're not going to tell anyone, okay?"

Dani, her face lighting up with happiness and acceptance, embraced the redheaded lieutenant. "Thank you," she said as tears fell from her glowing green eyes.

"Horatio?" Everyone looked up and saw Yelina coming in through the side yard. She stopped when her eyes fell on Dani. "Horatio, who is this? I heard a gunshot from my house and I was concerned. Is she responsible?"

Horatio let go of the ghost girl and stood up. He looked in the other direction. "Yelina, this is Dani Phantom, also known as Danielle Masters. She just thwarted another kidnapping and I'm guessing that she is what you heard last night when your neighbor's daughter was almost kidnapped the first time."

Yelina looked at Dani. "You're really Danielle?"

Dani nodded and changed back into Danielle. Yelina was taken aback with the girl's transformation, as with everyone else. Calleigh blinked. "Whoa! How did you do that?"

Danielle hesitated. Horatio stepped in. "I believe it's best that we all go back to the lab and discuss this."

"I'll go with you," Yelina stated. "I want to get the full story on this too."

* * *

><p>Eric was quietly looking over the scrapings found underneath Molly Novak's nails. There were traces human skin and wood underneath her nails, which Eric concluded must have come from her window frame. DNA results came back with a match to a Frederich Isak Showenhower. The man had a prior of theft and reckless endangerment. Looks like the FBI's looking for him now that he's escaped from federal prison again.<p>

Eric took a coffee break in the lounge. Today's mail was sitting on the counter in the back of the room. A small package was sitting on top of all the envelopes and magazines. Curious, Eric picked up the package. It was stamped as express so it must mean that someone sent it overnight. It was addressed to MDPD so it most likely meant Horatio. The return address said it was from the New York Crime Lab. Eric did remember Wolfe say that he and Calleigh contacted the NYPD yesterday but they weren't much help. Wolfe was going on that ghosts attacked their lab a few months ago. Eric chuckled. _'Looks like the NYPD isn't as great as everyone thought._

Eric's phone started vibrating in his pocket. It was Horatio.

"Yeah H?"

"Eric, I'm heading back to the lab. There's something that you need to know and you have to see it to believe it."

"Got it, H. The New York Crime Lab just sent you something in the mail. I think it might be useful for our kidnapping case. I haven't opened it yet," Eric responded.

"Leave it," Horatio ordered. "I'll look at it when I get back."

* * *

><p>Horatio and the team led a very frightened Danielle to an empty interrogation room. Eric Delko soon joined them. Danielle sat down in a chair as Walter and Frank closed all of the blinds in the room.<p>

"Danielle," Horatio began, "I want to assure you that what you tell us about yourself will not leave this room. We just want to ask a few questions regarding this case, okay? Just let us know when you want us to stop."

Danielle nodded, still nervous. She felt awful for not telling them in the first place. Horatio, Natalia and Yelina were so nice to her yesterday and this is how she repays them?

"We're not mad at you, Danielle," Natalia assured. "We just want to understand how this happened."

"W-Well," Danielle hesitantly started, "let me start by saying I'm sorry for not telling you in the first place. I have to keep this a secret from a lot of people. Otherwise, the Guys in White will destroy me."

Everyone blinked. The ones who were the punch line for every joke a taxpayer can think of were after this girl? Those idiots hunted ghosts and anything else regarding the paranormal. And they do a pretty crappy job at it too. Danielle changed into Dani to prove her point. The entire room gasped.

Dani looked scared. She's never revealed her secret to so many people in one day. She turned to Yelina. "I'm sorry, Yelina. That noise you heard last night were those ghost birds from earlier. I fought them off to save that girl. When they flew off, I changed back and that's when you found me on the front lawn. I lied because…well…would you have believed me if I told you the truth?"

Yelina gave the ghost girl a gentle hug. "It's alright. I'm just glad you saved her. And you're right. I don't think I would have believed you. I understand. I'm not mad at you." She released the girl and shivered. "Oooohhh…you're cold." Dani silently chuckled.

"So, ghosts are real?" Walter asked. Dani nodded. Walter whistled. "Sorry for teasing you about ghosts, Wolfe," he muttered to Ryan.

Calleigh then stepped in. "What about Danny Phantom…with a 'y'? Is he really your cousin?"

Dani cringed. She changed back into Danielle. This was going to be hard to explain to them. "I'm…his…clone," she murmured.

Eric scoffed. "Really? You're a product of human cloning? Everyone knows that's illegal."

Something clicked in Horatio's mind. "Human clone? Danielle, are you Daniel Fenton's clone?" Danielle nodded. "So, your relationship with your aunt and uncle?"

"They're not really my aunt and uncle," Danielle said bluntly. "They're Danny's parents."

Natalia then stepped in. "So Danny Fenton is really not your cousin?"

"No," Danielle answered, "but I prefer to call myself his cousin. It makes me sound more…human."

"No wonder we didn't find any record of her," Ryan muttered. "There's no birth record of her."

"So Vlad Masters cloned Daniel Fenton because he wanted a son but got a daughter instead?" Natalia asked. "Does he realize that what he did was illegal?"

Danielle got scared. "I know. But I can't turn him in because then he'll tell the Feds about me and…I don't want to think about it." Her eyes started to water.

"Danielle, I promise you we will not tell anyone your true identity," Horatio promised. "All I want right now is to find these girls and put the man who kidnapped them behind bars."

"But what about Vlad?"

"He's the mayor of Amity Park," Walter stated. "He's a little out of our jurisdiction, Danielle. We can't touch him." The girl's face fell.

Frank was confused. "Well, if Vlad Masters isn't our kidnapper then who is?"

"I checked out the scrapings from underneath Molly Novak's fingernails and I found a DNA match in CODIS," said Eric. "Frederich Isak Showenhower. Also known as Freakshow."

"I thought so," said Horatio. "The question is why is he abducting young girls all over Miami?"

"I think I might know," said Danielle. "I think Vlad must have asked him to look for me. Why else are those ghosts here? I've seen those vultures before and they're usually with Vlad."

"Danielle, are you familiar with Freakshow?" asked Horatio.

"No, but Danny might know him." Her face then fell. "I don't want to drag him into this."

"Maybe we don't have to," Ryan said. He turned to Calleigh. "If what Jo Danville said yesterday was true, then Mac Taylor and Danny Phantom might have swapped stories."

Calleigh furrowed her eyebrows. "You think Mac might know about Freakshow?"

Ryan looked pretty smug. "Heroes like to swap stories with fellow heroes. If they met then Mac might know a thing or two about ghosts or this Freakshow character."

* * *

><p><strong>The cat is out of the bag! Will Mac be helpful? Most likely...he did spend a week with the Fentons! He had to have learned some things while listening to Jack blabber about ghosts.<strong>

**FYI: the OCs in this story are mine. Anyone living or dead with these names are purely coincidental...blah, blah, blah...**

**Review! I love your opinions!**


	11. Chapter 11

**The new chapter is here! Horatio gets several answers on the kidnappings with an old friend of his...guess who? ;)  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 11<strong>

**Contacting the NYPD**

When the meeting ended Yelina, Natalia and Calleigh took Danielle out to lunch. The men stayed and ate their lunch at the lab. Horatio looked through the mail and found the package that Eric mentioned earlier. _'The NYPD must have sent this yesterday after Calleigh and Ryan contacted them.' _Walter filled Horatio in on what he found about Amity Park. Horatio's thoughts went back to Freakshow. He was arrested over a year ago; around the same time Phantom changed his ways. Horatio wondered if there was a connection.

Horatio opened the package. Wrapped in newspapers was a high-tech soup thermos. Horatio quirked an eyebrow. A packet was found underneath the Thermos. **'How to Work the Fenton Thermos'** was the title on the front page. A small note was clipped to the front as well:

'**Heard you had some ghost problems. Hope this helps.'**

**Doctor Sheldon Hawkes, ME of the NYPD**

**P.S. When you're done with it, please mail it to this address.**

An address to Fenton Works was written beneath the message. Horatio has never heard of it. Hopefully he'll be able to learn how this odd device worked before another girl gets captured.

* * *

><p>"YOU WHAT?" Freakshow shrieked. The Vultures just returned. They failed again at capturing Dani Phantom.<p>

"You weren't there!" argued the Leader. "If you were surrounded by police officers what would you do?"

Before Freakshow could argue, his disposable cell phone started ringing. He sighed and then answered it. "WHAT!"

"Good afternoon to you too," a cold voice answered.

"Vlad Masters, I still do not have the ghost girl. Those turkey brains you sent to me are anything but useful! If you want this girl so badly, why don't you just get her yourself?"

"Oh my! The rumors were true then," Vlad exclaimed sarcastically. "You do have ghost envy!"

"SHUT UP! I DO NOT HAVE GHOST ENVY!"

"Whatever. You can't do anything without attracting the authorities' attention. I'll send someone to assist you but if you do not catch her by tomorrow, I'll notify authorities about your whereabouts," Vlad warned. He then ended the call.

* * *

><p>After having lunch at Panera Bread, the CSI women took Danielle to a nearby clothing store. Unlike most girls, Danielle was anything but thrilled to go clothes shopping. She made it clear that she did not want anything involving dresses or skirts. Eventually, they bought a variety of clothes that Danielle approved of (mostly t-shirts, hoodie sweatshirts and a variety of shorts).<p>

By mid-afternoon Natalia and Calleigh brought Danielle back to the lab. Yelina went back home with Danielle's new clothes.

Danielle was having fun teasing Calleigh about her relationship with Eric.

"So, has Eric ever kissed you?" Danielle asked giggling.

"Now that is none of your business," Calleigh mockingly scolded.

"Oh come on, Calleigh," Natalia said. "Even Wolfe knows that there's something going on between you two."

Calleigh blushed. "Oh my God! Even Ryan? Is it that obvious?"

"Ever since Horatio killed Clavo Cruz," Natalia stated matter-of-factly, "I knew you two lovebirds would get together eventually."

_'Déjà vu!'_

They entered the building and looked for everyone else. Naturally, they started with Horatio. They found him in one of the labs looking over a strange soup thermos.

"Hey H," Calleigh greeted as she, Natalia and Danielle entered the room.

Horatio looked up and greeted them with a half smile. "Ladies…"

Natalia got a closer look at the Thermos that Horatio was looking at. "What's this? A self-heating soup thermos?"

Calleigh giggled. "That's actually a good idea. Have they actually invented something like that?"

Danielle giggled too. "Maybe it's in one of those magazines you find on airplanes."

The three laughed. Danielle thought she saw Horatio silently chuckle.

"This, ladies, is called the Fenton Thermos," Horatio explained. Danielle's ears perked up at the word Fenton. "It's a product of Fenton Works. The New York Crime Lab sent me this device to help us find the missing girls."

Ryan came in carrying the packet of instructions. "H, this gizmo is probably the weirdest one I've ever stumbled on to. Whoever thought of a thermos as a ghost catching device? Why not use those vacuum devices like in the movies?"

Horatio chuckled. "So you know how to turn it on?"

"Yeah, but for some reason Jo left a sticky note saying to not press the release button. Apparently, Phantom thought it would be funny to send the New York Chief of Detectives a 'surprise' with members of Mac's team that returned yesterday."

Danielle giggled. "That sounds like Danny alright!"

Ryan continued. "So what do think? Should I press the release button?"

"Best to take Jo's word for it and _not_ do it," Horatio replied. He turned his attention to Danielle. "Are you familiar with this device?"

Danielle nodded. "Yeah. Danny uses that all the time to catch ghosts. Sometimes he even gets stuck in it!"

"I'm not even going to ask how that's possible," Natalia muttered.

"Do you think we can contact Danny?" asked Horatio.

Danielle's face fell. "I don't want to pull him into this. I promised him I'd be careful while I traveled. I can't have him coming to my rescue every time I'm in trouble."

Horatio nodded. "Okay. How about we try contacting the NYPD first? If they aren't much help, then we'll try contacting your cousin. Does that sound good to you?"

Danielle thought about it. She knew that if she contacted Danny he'd get worried about her and, ultimately, come to her rescue. On the other hand, if she contacted his friend, Mac, first then maybe she can avoid calling Danny altogether.

"I guess it's worth a shot," she hesitantly said.

Eric then came in. "H, Ryan got an e-mail from Mac Taylor. He's back in New York."

"Get the video connection ready. Danielle and I will be there in a moment."

* * *

><p>"There's ANOTHER Ghost Child on the loose?" asked Skulker.<p>

"Did I stutter?" Freakshow inquired. "You need to catch this girl by tomorrow or I'll feed your true form to the gators."

Skulker huffed. "Fine. Do you know where she's at?"

"According to your bird-brained friends, she's currently with the Miami-Dade Police Department. I'm sure you and the Vultures will be able to find her."

"No way!" the Leader shouted. "There's no way we're going against that girl again!"

Freakshow released another frustrated sigh. "Fine! Then you three stooges can distract the CSI's while Skulker here finds the girl. DOES THAT SATISFY YOU?"

The three Vultures shrugged and then nodded. They followed Skulker out of the cabin towards Miami.

Freakshow, annoyed by the sniveling girls still held captive in the back room, called to Lydia. "Lydia! Find something edible for these girls so they can shut up!"

* * *

><p>Horatio led Danielle to the same room Calleigh and Ryan contacted the NYPD before. A few keystrokes and a mouse click later the connection was on. Mac Taylor's image popped up on the screen.<p>

"Horatio Caine," Mac greeted. "It's been awhile."

"Detective Mac Taylor, it's good to hear from you again," Horatio greeted back.

"Who is that young lady with you? A niece?" asked Mac.

"I'm Danielle. And no, I'm not Horatio's niece." Horatio chuckled.

Mac squinted at Danielle, trying to get a closer look at the girl. "You look a lot like someone I know."

"Would that someone happened to be named Daniel Fenton, aka Danny Phantom?" asked Horatio getting right to the point.

Mac was surprised that Horatio knew the name. "Yeah. How do you know Daniel?"

"I don't," Horatio said. He nodded his head in Danielle's direction. "She does."

"Alright. How do you know Daniel, Danielle?" asked Mac. For some reason that didn't sound right. Probably because the names are practically the same.

Danielle looked nervous and looked to Horatio. "It's okay, sweetie. You can tell him," he assured her.

Danielle gulped and changed into Dani. Mac was shocked beyond belief.

"I think I've officially entered the Twilight Zone," Mac finally said. "Let me guess, your name is Dani Phantom…with an 'i'. I know that DP insignia anywhere." _'Wow! He's good!'_

Dani looked down in shame. She knew this would be a bad idea. Horatio then stepped in to explain. "She is actually a human clone of both Danny Fenton and Danny Phantom. You and I both know that human cloning is illegal, Mac."

Mac looked around to see if anyone was listening. "Does anyone else know about this?"

"Other than myself, my team, and Mr. Fenton himself, no one else knows about this girl's identity," Horatio answered. "I intend to keep it that way. I'm asking you to not tell anyone about this girl or the Feds will hunt her down."

Mac nodded. "You have my word. How can I help you?"

Dani changed back into Danielle as Horatio took over. "You've obviously met Mr. Fenton, his sister and his friends before. Tell me: what do you know about ghosts?"

Mac's expression became grim. "Besides the basic knowledge everyone knows about ghosts, a lot."

"Explain, Mac."

"Ghosts can be the spirits of the deceased, as a lot of people know. I should know too; two of my former officers are ghosts as well as a dead serial killer Phantom just recaptured."

This information seemed interesting to Horatio. His thoughts quickly went to his dead wife, Marisol, before he continued. "Go on."

"It also seems that there are some ghosts that were not part of the living to begin with. My partner, Jo Danville, once caught a robot that was powered by a green Smurf ghost," Mac continued. "Weird but true."

"He must be talking about Skulker, the Ghost Zone's self-proclaimed greatest hunter," Danielle briefly explained.

"Mac, are you referring to that heist that occurred in your lab a few months ago?" asked Horatio.

"If you're talking about when a bunch of ghosts turned my lab into the Nakatomi Building a few months then yes," Mac replied bitterly. "The media said that it was a bunch of gangsters that took over. Chief Sinclair said it was best that the public thought that humans tried to take over the lab. He didn't think anyone would believe that ghosts tried to attack the lab."

"I see," Horatio stated. "Mac, does the name 'Freakshow' ring a bell?"

Mac thought for a moment. "Can't say that I have. Why?"

"Freakshow, or Frederich Isak Showenhower, escaped from federal prison last week and we have reason to believe that he's linked to a series of kidnappings all over Miami," Horatio explained.

"Now THAT name sounds familiar," Mac said. Looks like he follows people by their real names instead of their nicknames. "If I recall correctly he was arrested last year for theft and reckless endangerment."

"Did you know that he was arrested in Amity Park, Indiana?" asked Horatio.

Mac frowned. "Amity Park? No, I didn't. And I just got back from there today, long story."

"Did you see Danny?" asked Danielle.

Mac half-smiled. "As a matter of fact I did."

Horatio went back to the main topic. "Mac, we believe that ghosts are abducting young girls with black hair and blue eyes. I have reason to believe that they're targeting Danielle here."

Mac furrowed his eyebrows. "Why are they after Daniel's clone?"

Danielle beat Horatio at answering that question. "I think it's because Vlad hired him to find me for some reason!"

That got Mac's attention. "Vlad? As in Vlad Masters, mayor of Amity Park and known as Vlad Plasmius?"

"Yeah," Danielle answered bitterly. "In a way, he's my father. He created me in an attempt to clone Danny. He's tried to kill me twice! I hate him!"

"If that's the case, then Vlad is the real ringleader behind this whole circus," Mac said grimly.

"He's in Indiana. Neither of us can touch him," Horatio said just as grimly. "However, I want to find these missing girls and serve Freakshow to the Feds on a silver platter."

Danielle stepped in again. "Horatio and everyone else won't be able to fight Freakshow because of his ghostly henchmen."

Mac chuckled. "Well, that shouldn't be a problem for you, Danielle. If you really are Daniel's clone then that should also make you a halfa."

Horatio looked at Danielle questioningly. "Halfa?"

"Half-human, half-ghost," Danielle explained.

"You should also have a Fenton Thermos with you if you want to catch those henchmen," Mac added.

"That, we already have," Horatio replied. "We have Dr. Hawkes to thank for that."

"So that's where it went," Mac said. "Do yourself a favor and do NOT press the release button. There's already a ghost in there and he's the biggest pain in Phantom's ass."

"Danielle, we found you and Molly Novak in the Everglades," Horatio stated. "If my hunch is correct, then Freakshow is probably hiding somewhere in there." Danielle nodded in agreement.

Mac sighed. "If that's all you have to ask, then I better get going. I'm exhausted."

"Thank you for enlightening us, Mac," Horatio thanked.

"Bye Mac!" Danielle called. "Nice meeting you!"

"Likewise. Good luck," The connection then ended.

* * *

><p><strong>Awesome! Horatio and Mac: a fierce combination! And a halfa and they're unstoppable! Good thing they both know one!<strong>

**Skulker is back with a vengeance! ****Now he knows about Dani! This is about to get good!**

**I wonder what the CSI's would look like as a Butch Hartman cartoon...**

**Review, people!**


	12. Chapter 12

**Okay! This will shed some light on Calleigh's experience with the paranormal. If you haven't seen the episode 'Backfire' then don't read the first half of this chapter... The last thing I want to do is spoil anything for those who don't watch the show.**

**Enjoy!  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 12<strong>

**Abduction**

After the talk with Mac, it seems that a plan was forming for the CSI's. Unfortunately, Horatio had to put it on hold since it was getting dark. Everyone on Horatio's team knew that going into the Everglades alone at night is a very stupid thing to do. If you're alone in the Everglades at night, you're as good as gator bait. It's a miracle that Danielle survived the night in there.

Danielle sat in the lounge, reading a magazine while waiting for Yelina to pick her up for the night. The ghost girl wanted to find those missing girls sooner rather than later but Horatio insisted that it's best to start searching the Glades in the morning. No amount of puppy-dog eyes would change the lieutenant's mind, no matter how hard Danielle tried.

Calleigh entered the lounge and poured herself a cup of coffee. She then sat down across from Danielle.

"Hey Danielle," she greeted.

Danielle looked up and smiled a little. "Hi Calleigh."

"Is it alright if I talk to you before you leave for today?"

Danielle shrugged. "I guess so."

Calleigh sighed, wondering where to start. "You know, I actually kind of know what being a ghost is like."

The ghost girl raised her eyebrows. "You do?"

Calleigh chuckled to herself. "I can't believe I'm saying this! I don't know how to explain it, but I've actually had an out-of-body experience."

"What do you mean?"

"Almost two years ago, Ryan and I were called to investigate a crime scene in a house that was going under renovations. A fire broke out and someone was trapped inside. I've had bad experiences in the past regarding house fires but I went in anyway despite Ryan's protests. I got the person out but I inhaled a lot of smoke."

"That's a bad thing, right?" asked Danielle.

"Yes, especially for me who has had respiratory problems in the past," Calleigh continued. "I left the hospital – at least I _thought_ I left the hospital – and went back to work. I noticed throughout the day that everyone was ignoring me. Jesse, Ryan, Walter, Natalia, Eric, even Horatio ignored me."

"That's weird."

"I know. When I was processing the crime scene back at the house after the fire was put out, the spirit of a dead boy who died in that same fire _spoke_ to me," Calleigh said still shocked that she was explaining this out-of-body experience to a twelve-year-old ghost girl.

"So you could see ghosts," Danielle clarified.

"It totally freaked me out! The spirit of a dead boy was _talking_ to me! Although, you're probably used to that." Danielle nodded. "I was afraid. I followed Eric back to the hospital and saw that he was visiting my body that was currently in some kind of coma," Calleigh trailed off. "But I was still alive, let me assure you. The doctors must have put me on a lot of medicine to knock me out."

"So when that dead kid's spirit spoke to you, you were afraid that you were dying, weren't you?" asked Danielle.

"Oh my God, you have no idea," Calleigh stated. "All the kid and I could do was watch my friends solve his murder."

"The kid was murdered?"

"It was an accident, I believe. If I recall, I think the culprit was sent to prison for manslaughter," Calleigh explained. "Anyway, after watching Ryan examine some sprinklers that were meant to put out the fire but didn't, it all became clear to me who did it. Before I could explain it to the kid, I guess I just…went back into my body. Because the next thing I knew, I was in the hospital bed."

Danielle's eyes were wide as saucers. "Wow!"

Calleigh chuckled. "I know. I told Eric what I found out, dismissing it as a dream but after meeting you and those…ghosts…I don't know. I guess I kind of believe in ghosts now."

"I've never heard anything like that before," Danielle stated.

"Just don't tell anyone I now believe in ghosts," Calleigh warned jokingly. "I do have a reputation you know."

Danielle chuckled. A wisp of blue mist escaped from Danielle's mouth.

Calleigh saw it. "What was that? That blue mist?"

Danielle became both alert and scared. "It's my ghost sense. It happens when a ghost is near."

Hearing this, Calleigh looked around, her hand subconsciously going for her gun. She noticed something was quickly approaching the window. Instinctively, Calleigh jumped from her seat, grabbed Danielle, and dove underneath a nearby table, shielding the girl with her body.

_CRASH! KABOOM!_

Something that appeared to be a missile crashed through the window and exploded upon impact. The lounge was a mess. Glass was all over the floor, the magazines on the coffee table were on fire, and the furniture was either on fire or covered in dust and debris.

As Calleigh's vision came back into focus she saw that the three talking green vultures came back. Accompanying them was a robot with flaming green hair. Calleigh looked down at Danielle beneath her.

"Danielle, are you okay?" Calleigh whispered.

The girl coughed. "I think so," she sputtered.

The robot turned in their direction. He smiled. "It seems that finding you was easier than I thought."

Calleigh kept her eyes on the robot. She slowly reached for her gun at her hip. "Danielle, I want you to turn invisible and get out of here," she spoke softly. "Don't change if you don't have to. Just get out of here now! I'll keep the Tin Man busy."

Danielle did so without argument. Before she left though, she whispered into Calleigh's ear, "Thank you, Calleigh! Keep Skulker busy as long as you can, okay?" Calleigh nodded. Danielle then fled the lounge. _'I can't fight those guys at once! I'll find Horatio! He'll know what to do!'_ She ran to the bathroom and changed into Dani Phantom. _'I hope Calleigh can handle Skulker.'_

* * *

><p>Calleigh pulled her gun at Skulker. "Miami-Dade Police! Put your hands in the air!"<p>

Skulker smirked. "I don't have to do such a thing for a human! No matter how many times you shoot me, I cannot get hurt. Catch me if you can!" He then turned intangible and flew through the walls. She tried shooting at the robot but the bullets went right through him. Calleigh had to find Horatio so they can stop Skulker.

She slowly side-stepped toward the door but the Third Vulture blocked her path.

"Nice try, beautiful! You're not going anywhere!" he exclaimed.

Calleigh grimaced. "Oh, gross! A perverted turkey vulture!"

"Hey! We're not turkeys!"

The Leader broke the argument. "Just keep this one busy! We'll keep looking for the girl!" He and the Second Vulture phased through the walls, looking for Danielle.

The Third and Calleigh continued staring at each other, waiting for someone to make the first move.

"Face it, blondie! You're not going to save the other girls!" taunted the Third.

Calleigh growled. "You know, I really hate it when people call me that! If you call me that again, I'm going to fill you with stuffing and serve you to my family next Thanksgiving!"

"What are you going to do? Shave your head bald and dump the hair on me?" he taunted.

It was one thing for people to call Calleigh 'blondie' but when they call her anything related to Britney Spears, Calleigh must summon every ounce of self-control not to beat them into a pulp **(Let's face it. You'd want to do the same thing)**. They're just lucky she's always on duty when they do so.

Calleigh's eye twitched at the Britney Spears comment. That's it! After years of enduring those kinds of remarks it was time to release a little steam. She pulled out a bottle of mace and aimed it at the bird. "Take. That. Back," she growled.

The Third laughed. "What are you going to do with that? Spray me?" He clearly had poor eyesight like his comrades. He must be thinking the mace was something else, like a hairspray.

Calleigh smirked. "Yes, as a matter of fact, that is what I'll do." She sprayed the mace into the Vulture's eyes, blinding him. He plopped on the floor and rolled around in pain. She kicked the bird hard and hit him with the butt of her gun.

"Calleigh!"

Ryan entered the room holding the Fenton Thermos in his hand. He saw the bird rolling around on the floor in agony.

"Geez, Calleigh! What did you do to it?" asked a very astonished Ryan.

Calleigh sighed, calming herself down. "Just released a couple of years of built-up steam on him," she replied casually. She noticed what Ryan was carrying. "God, Ryan! Do you really think that thing will actually work?"

Ryan glanced over at the Vulture now rubbing his teary eyes. "Only one way to find out." He removed the lid, aimed the Thermos at the Vulture, and pressed the 'On' button. A beam of light burst out of the device hitting the Vulture. In moments, the bird was sucked into the Thermos. Ryan put the lid back on and whistled. "Walter owes me $50. It totally works!"

Calleigh was astonished. "I don't know what to say except find the other ghosts!"

"Let's do it before they find Danielle. I don't even want to think about what Freakshow wants to do to her."

* * *

><p>Dani flew through wall after wall looking for Horatio, Natalia, or anyone else who could help her. The entire lab had been evacuated. No one was around. A scream caught her attention. It was coming from the morgue. Dani followed the scream and found herself in the Autopsy Room where Skulker had Natalia, Walter, and a very scared Dr. Loman in a corner. Natalia and Walter, being the only ones with guns, stood in front of Tom with their guns aimed at the ghostly robot.<p>

"I'll ask you one more time: Where is the Ghost Girl?" Skulker demanded.

"We're not telling you shit," Natalia growled. Dani had never heard the woman talk like that before!

"P-P-Please!" Tom pleaded. "Just leave! The girl is not here…so just…just get out!"

This amused the ghostly robot. "Please! Begging for your lives won't save her or yourselves!"

"At least we can die trying," Walter muttered.

Skulker, losing his patience, turned it up a notch and aimed one of his weapons towards Natalia. "I might as well start by picking you off one by one. If you tell me where the girl is I'll spare your life."

"Get away from her!" Danielle shouted becoming visible. Her fists started charging up a ghost ray. "You will NOT hurt my friends!"

Skulker turned to Dani and scoffed at her. "Please! I thought you didn't trust adults like her and her comrades! Why the sudden change of heart?"

"Easy!" Dani launched an ecto-disk at Skulker, knocking him into a wall. "It's because they don't want to turn me into a puddle of goo! They earned my trust!"

Dr. Loman blinked. "I don't even know who that girl is."

"We'll tell you later," Walter mumbled to him.

Skulker came out of the hole and threw what appeared to be a black Rubix cube at Dani. The thing then enveloped her.

"What is this? Why can't I phase out of this thing?" Dani suddenly changed into Danielle.

Skulker chuckled. "A Spectral Energy Neutralizer! As long as you're in there, you're as human as your pathetic friends."

Natalia, Walter and Tom rushed to the cube to try and get the girl out of it. A blast from Skulker interrupted their examination. He grabbed the box, turned intangible and phased out of the building.

* * *

><p>Where was Horatio? Studying the pajamas Molly Novak died in. There was plenty of mud, dirt, and leaves for the lieutenant to analyze. If he can identify them, then he could narrow down where the kidnapped girls and Freakshow are. Eric and Frank were contacting the FBI, saying they might know where one of their fugitives was hiding.<p>

Horatio looked identified every sample he could find on the dead girl's pajamas. He narrowed it down to the northern part of the Everglades. It will be up to canine units and Danielle to do the rest.

An explosion interrupted his work. Without thinking, Horatio pulled out his gun from the holster hidden underneath his lab coat. Throwing the coat on the floor, Horatio made his way toward the door…only to be stopped by one of the Vultures. This one was wearing dark sunglasses for the blind.

"There's no way I'm letting you get past me," the Second gloated. Horatio aimed his gun at the bird. "Ha! That's not going to work on meeeeeeeeeee!" Ryan snuck up on the Second and sucked him into the Thermos. Calleigh was right behind him.

"You okay, H?" Wolfe asked.

"Yes, I'm fine," said Horatio. He eyed the Thermos in Ryan's hands. "I see that you figured out how to handle that Thermos."

Calleigh nodded. "Ryan already got one of them. There's only one more of those birds roaming around the lab."

"What caused that explosion?"

"It was…a missile of some kind, I don't know. One moment I was having a little girl-talk with Danielle in the lounge, the next moment the entire room exploded!"

"Did you see anything?" asked Horatio.

"Let's see," Calleigh took a moment to get her memories in order. "A strange…robot, I think, was responsible for the explosion. He was after Danielle. I think she said that his name was…Skulker?"

Horatio looked down at the floor, deep in thought. "Skulker…Danielle said that Skulker is the Ghost Zone's self-proclaimed greatest hunter. Calleigh, where is Danielle now?"

Calleigh released a sad sigh. "I told her to get out of there. I thought I could distract the robot but he gave me the slip. I should have went with her…"

Ryan tried comforting her. "Calleigh now is not the time to beat yourself up."

"H!"

The three turned to find Natalia, Tom and Walter running in their direction. Their faces were pale as the dead bodies in the morgue.

"Walter, what happened?" asked Horatio.

"A…freaky robotic…_thing_ abducted Dani," Walter stuttered.

"She tried to stop it from hurting us," Natalia explained. "But he got the upper hand. There was nothing we could do. We were sitting ducks."

"My fault…" Tom mumbled. "They were too busy saving my ass."

"Forget the excuses," Horatio rumbled, "right now we need to find Danielle before it's too late."

"Horatio!" Eric called. He and Frank were quickly approaching the group.

"We just saw some punk dressed like the Tin Man fly out of the building," Frank stated. "He was carrying Danielle in a giant cube. Judging by the direction he's flying, I'm guessing he's flying towards the Everglades."

* * *

><p><strong>EEEEEP! Skulker's got Dani! What's going to happen to her? <strong>

**I watched the episode 'Backfire' the other day on AMC. The way Calleigh reacted when she saw the dead kid's ghost was hilarious!**

**Review folks! **


	13. Chapter 13

**Sorry for the delay, folks! Had a small case of writer's block. All fixed now!**

**I had to include some OC's of my own. Those missing girls need names too you know. They are fictional characters, anyone bearing the same name, living or dead, is coincidental... you get the drill.  
><strong>

**Enjoy!  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 13<strong>

**Return to the Everglades**

Danielle struggled to get out of the cube she was trapped in but to no avail. The thing was disrupting her powers. Skulker just ignored her protests and various insults. Eventually, Skulker descended into an abandoned cabin in the middle of the Everglades.

"Lydia!" called Skulker. "I've brought the Ghost Girl! Where do you want her?"

Lydia looked up from a magazine she was reading. She shrugged and pointed to the room where the other girls were being held captive. Skulker phased through the wall and into the room. The girls in there shrieked.

"Be quiet or I'll mount your heads on my wall!" Skulker threatened. The girls shut up. He placed the cube down on the floor in front of them. He then pulled out a Plasmius Maximus and shocked Danielle who howled in pain.

"Wh-What did you do to me?"

"This device will cancel out your abilities for the next six hours," Skulker explained. "In case you somehow escape from your containment unit. That should give my employer plenty of time to come and pick you up."

"I don't need my powers to take you on," Danielle hissed trying to act brave like her new friends. "Let me take you on without your suit! You're not so tough without it! I could squash you like a bug!"

Skulker just laughed as he left the room. Danielle continued to struggle out of the box. She looked to the other girls for help. Like the CSI's said, all three girls had black hair and blue eyes. Sure enough, they were all wearing their pajamas.

"You must be the missing girls everyone was talking about," Danielle said to them.

The oldest one, a Hispanic girl, spoke up. "Yes. Who are you?"

"My name is Danielle Masters. Can you get me out of this thing?"

The Hispanic girl looked at the other two. She then looked back at Danielle. "Yes, we'll help you out." The three then examined the box Danielle was trapped in.

"What does this button do?" the youngest asked. She pressed the button. The box then released Danielle and shrank back to the size of a Rubix cube.

"Thanks," said Danielle. She picked it up and pocketed it. _'This might come in handy.'_ She then saw the girls huddle back into their corner. "Well, you know my name. What about you guys?"

"I'm Luna Rivera," the Hispanic girl said. "I'm thirteen years old."

"Gwen Seabrook," the youngest said. "I'm eleven."

"Leila Saturn," the other girl said. "I'm twelve years old. What about you?"

"I'm also twelve," said Danielle. She knew that she was only over a year old but who would believe that? "How long have you guys been here?"

"Three, maybe four days," answered Luna. "Did that other girl escape alright? Molly?"

Danielle's face fell. "No, she didn't. She ran into me two nights ago but she had an asthma attack and…she didn't make it."

Gwen started sniffling. Leila silently wept.

"I was afraid of that," Luna muttered her eyes misting. "She kept on saying that she needed her inhaler. She was having trouble breathing. The fact that she was kidnapped was making it worse. I thought if we could distract that freaky bald man and his girlfriend, she could escape and get help. I guess I just sent her to her death instead."

Danielle, remembering what Horatio said about Molly, disagreed. "That's not true! It's not your fault!"

The girls looked up at her in confusion. How can this girl not be scared right now? They were hostages for crying out loud!

"What are you talking about?" Leila asked skeptically. "If she just stayed here, she might still be alive!"

"No," Danielle argued, "She had bad asthma. She would have died a slow and painful death if she stayed here. She died knowing that you three helped her escape! I saw her the night she died. I protected her when that green lady tried to find her. She'll never forget what we did for her and neither will her family!" Danielle paused, realizing how grown up that sounded.

Luna stared at the ghost clone. "How do you know this?"

"A wise person told me that," Danielle said fondly remembering everything Horatio and the rest of his team told her. "He and his friends will find us."

"What were you doing in the Everglades in the first place?" Gwen asked.

"Uh…I…ran away from home," Danielle stuttered. She wasn't as good as lying as Danny.

"That would explain why you're wearing boy's clothing," Gwen muttered.

"So, why did that robot guy taser you? What was he talking about?" Leila pressed.

"Uh…I think it has something to do with…my blood!" Danielle fibbed. "I have a very rare blood type: Double A negative blood."

"So you're like a drug mule," Luna presumed. "They keep you alive so they can harvest your blood and sell it on the black market. I guess you'd be a blood mule. My uncle went to prison for drug trafficking. That's how I know."

Danielle shivered at the thought. _'I don't know what's worse: being a blood mule or a puddle of ectoplasm!'_

"I want to go home," Gwen whimpered.

"And you will," Danielle assured her. "Why don't you just make a run for it? That robot guy isn't so tough without his suit on."

"You're obviously not from around here," Leila sneered. "Everyone knows that if you get lost in the Everglades you're as good as gator bait out there! You'll be lucky if a ranger finds you."

"How did Molly escape anyway?" asked Danielle.

"I tackled the bald man while Gwen and Leila distracted the green lady," Luna explained.

"That lady isn't human!" Gwen exclaimed. "The tattoos on her body came to life and chased her! It's true! I saw it!"

"The bald man looks like a cross between Dr. Evil and the Joker," Leila described. "He also seems jealous of his girlfriend. I would too if someone I know could do something like that."

"Are you always this skeptical?" asked Danielle irritably.

Leila glared at the ghost girl. "You would be too if you've been here for three days."

"Why don't you just do the same thing again? Fight back! You're not damsels-in-distress!" exclaimed Danielle.

Before Leila can come up with a reply, something blasted at Danielle. She was horrified to see that she was suddenly restrained. Freakshow, Skulker and Lydia came into the room. Skulker had what appeared to be a device that extracted blood…complete with a very big needle. The other girls screamed and huddled into a corner.

"Well now! If it isn't the little Ghost Girl that Plasmius was talking about!" exclaimed Freakshow. "You're not as slippery as the Ghost Boy, thank goodness! So hopefully you'll cooperate with us and we'll let you go, no strings attached."

"DON'T TOUCH ME!" Danielle screeched.

"Don't worry. You'll only feel a slight pinch. Lydia, get her hooked up to the machine!"

Lydia put a needle into Danielle's arm, ignoring her screaming. "DANNY! VALERIE! NATALIA! HORATIO! SOMEONE HELP ME!"

Luna gasped when she saw what Danielle was hooked up to. "That's the machine that extracts blood from you at the blood bank! She's too young to do this!"

Freakshow laughed. "I don't care if she's a five-year-old girl! She has what we want and we're going to drain every last drop from her." At that moment, a mixture of green and red blood started filling the blood bag. "Lydia, make sure those girls behave themselves."

Luna, Leila, and Gwen watched helplessly as Danielle's blood was slowly drained from her body.

* * *

><p>Horatio decided to change the plan. Instead of waiting for morning to come, he started the search immediately despite the fact that night was quickly approaching. He and Eric sped off toward the Everglades in his Hummer. The rest of the team was following close behind (Ryan managed to catch the last Vulture on their way to the garage).<p>

"This is Lieutenant Horatio Caine! A child has been abducted from the Miami-Dade Crime Lab! Her name is Danielle Masters, twelve years old. She has black hair and blue eyes. Suspect heading towards the Everglades; considered armed and extremely dangerous! Approach with caution!" he shouted into his radio.

"Copy that," replied a woman's voice. "Canine units and helicopter units heading to the Everglades and on standby. An Amber Alert has been issued."

"H, do you really think Vlad Masters is after this girl?" asked Eric.

"He's like a puppet master, Eric. He's using other people to do his dirty work so his hands stay clean," Horatio rumbled.

"How are we going to be able to fight these guys? Ryan has the only ghost catching device. What if one of us finds one of these guys and we don't have the Thermos?"

"I'd rather not think about it right now," Horatio said irritably. He was too busy figuring out a way to rescue Danielle before it was too late.

The team met with the Feds at a ranger's station. Horatio told them that the girls would most likely be found in the northern part of the Glades. They would start their search there. The helicopters started flying all over the area.

* * *

><p>Danielle tried breaking free so she can rip the needle out of her arm and make a break for it but nothing worked.<p>

"Ha ha! The more you struggle, the more blood you'll lose!" Freakshow exclaimed.

Lydia observed the other girls. They were talking amongst themselves. Leila then tackled Lydia, pulling her hood well over her face. Gwen then ran over to Skulker and hopped on his back.

"Where's the off switch on this guy?" Gwen yelled.

Freakshow tried to help Lydia but Luna tackled him too.

"Leave this girl alone! You're killing her!"

Skulker then threw Gwen off of his back. He went over to Danielle, ripped the needle out of her arm, and took the blood bag. "This should be more than enough for my employer," Skulker said. He then turned intangible and flew out of the cabin. Gwen then started wrestling with Freakshow.

"Get off of me, you brat!" Freakshow exclaimed.

Luna then went to a bleeding semi-conscious Danielle. "She's lost a lot of blood! We have to get her out of here!" Luna tore off a piece of her sleeve and used it as a bandage.

"Wh-Wh-Why are you helping me?" Danielle groaned.

"Molly died with dignity because we helped her escape from this hellhole," Luna whispered. "We just had to hear it from you to realize that."

Danielle's vision was starting to blur. "The cube…my pocket…Freakshow…" She then became still. Luna grabbed the cube from her pocket.

"Gwen! Get off of him!" Luna called.

Gwen let go of Freakshow's cape. Luna threw the cube at him. The cube enveloped Freakshow. "Hey! What is this? Get me out of this thing!"

With Lydia turning her attention to Freakshow, the girls then fled the room and out the cabin (Luna was carrying Danielle piggyback style).

It was now dark outside. Leila groaned. "Great! We'll be dead by morning!"

The girls kept running through weeds, mud, water, and more mud. The light of the moon was their only guide. The four girls were now at the mercy of the Everglades and the creatures that lived in it.

* * *

><p><strong>It's not my best work...but those girls need names. I'm not going to call them Girl 1, Girl 2, and so on! I'm just going to call the Spectral Energy Neutralizer the cube. Name's too long.<strong>

**I'm curious...should Dani stay in Miami till after Phantom Planet? She's obviously not safe in Amity Park with Vlad as mayor...it's common sense! Of course, she'll also have to let Danny know about it if she stays.**

**Don't worry! Those girls will get help from an unlikely source...**


	14. Chapter 14

**The rescue mission continues! Horatio is NOT happy about this! If you're smart, you'd do as he says when he's pissed off!**

**Enjoy!  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 14<strong>

**A Glow-in-the-Dark Lead**

The CSI's and the Feds were having little to no luck finding Danielle. Kind of hard to find her when it's pitch black outside. Add the fact that there are gators and panthers lurking out there only made Horatio even more concerned. The Feds weren't that much help either. They were either too busy looking on the computers or chatting on their cell phones. Horatio always thought the Feds were a pain in the neck.

"Horatio!" Ryan called breaking Horatio's train of thought.

"Yeah?"

"I just got a text from an anonymous source," Ryan said. "We tried tracing it back but it keeps bouncing back. Not even the Feds can break through. I'm thinking disposable cell phone."

"What did the text say?" asked Horatio.

"They're coordinates," Ryan explained.

This puzzled the redhead. "Coordinates?"

"Yeah. Check it out." Ryan showed Horatio the text message.

Horatio took a look at the text message. He turned to the others. "Guys, we have a possible lead. I want helicopters and canine units out in the field now! These coordinates could lead us to them!" With that, the CSI's and the Feds rushed out of the ranger's station and into the Everglades.

* * *

><p>The girls continued running through the swamps. They found a clearing and, after checking to make sure there were no nests of any kind, stopped to rest. Gwen and Leila gathered leaves to make a makeshift bed for Danielle. Luna carefully laid her in the leaves. She then checked Danielle's arm to see if it stopped bleeding.<p>

Danielle groaned regaining consciousness. "Wh-where am I?"

"Somewhere in the Everglades," Luna answered. "We've just been running."

"We're just resting for now till the sky gets brighter," said Leila, "or until one of us sees an alligator coming in our direction."

Luna changed the subject. "Do you have a blood disorder, Danielle?"

Danielle looked at her quizzically. "I don't think so. Why?"

"Your blood was _glowing_!" Leila exclaimed. "Is that a side affect of chemo or something? I swear I saw a hint of green in that bag of blood!"

"No," Danielle answered still confused about what this conversation is about. "I've never had chemo before." She wasn't going to ask what chemo was. That will just make them more suspicious. She tried to sit up only to be overcome with dizziness.

"We need to give her water," said Luna. "She needs to stay hydrated. She also needs something to eat."

"How do you know all of this?" asked Danielle.

"My mother is a nurse. She works at a blood bank."

"Problem," Leila stated. "What are we going to give her to drink? The Glades water is disgusting! No way that stuff is safe to drink!" The way Leila acted reminded Danielle of Danny's cynical friend Sam.

"What are we going to eat?" asked Gwen. "I haven't been to the Everglades since my Girl Scout field trip in second grade and I don't have the faintest clue on what's safe to eat here."

"You wouldn't be able to tell anyway," Leila said flatly. "It's too dark to see."

A blue mist escaped from Danielle's mouth. She quickly covered her mouth before anyone saw. But Leila and Luna did.

"What was that?" asked Luna. "Are you cold?"

Leila, hearing the question, turned towards the girls and threw her arms into the air. "Cold? Are you freaking serious? It's, like, seventy-two degrees out here!"

"I wonder why that green lady hasn't unleashed her monster tattoos at us yet?" asked Gwen ignoring the argument.

"That's because we took care of her," a voice replied confidently.

The girls yelped and turned toward the source of the voice. They were frozen in fear as two figures emerged from the bushes.

* * *

><p>Horatio's search eventually leads the team to an abandoned cabin. Upon entering, what they found was what appeared to be a battlefield. Scorch marks marked the walls, ceiling and floors. Old, decaying furniture was upturned and partially burned. Windows were shattered. Puddles of ectoplasm littered the floor as well. In the middle of it all was Freakshow stuck in a giant cube. Next to him was a green woman covered in tattoos. She was hog-tied with strange glowing green rope. Her appearance matched Danielle's description from yesterday.<p>

"Ryan!" Horatio called. "I need you in here now!"

Wolfe came in, Thermos in hand. Horatio simply turned his head in Lydia's direction and let Ryan take care of the rest.

Horatio then approached Freakshow. "Well, well, well. Frederich Isak Showenhower, aka Freakshow."

The evil ringmaster sneered at the lieutenant. "And, pray tell, who the heck are you?"

"My name is Lieutenant Horatio Caine, head of the Miami Crime Lab, and ally of the Feds…" Horatio only added that last part to intimidate Freakshow (H hates the Feds), which worked a little too well.

"WHAT? NO! I REFUSE TO GO BACK TO PRISON!"

Horatio, not in the mood for drama, pulled out his gun and aimed it at Freakshow's head. "Where…are…the girls?" he asked slowly.

"How should I know? One moment I was minding my own business, the next moment I'm being tackled by a thirteen year old girl!" Freakshow exclaimed acting as ignorant as possible, which Horatio saw right through.

"Drop the ignorance and answer the question," Horatio growled. "Where…are…they?"

"I don't know!" Freakshow assured the redhead. "After one of them tackled me and subdued Lydia, my minion that your friend just sucked up, they grabbed the Ghost Girl and ran off into the Glades! I swear!"

"H!" Eric called. "You're gonna want to see this."

After ordering Frank and Walter to keep an eye on Freakshow (not that he could go anywhere), Horatio and Ryan went into a room with no windows. There the three men saw a machine that is used to extract blood.

"They've already done it," Eric mumbled grimly. "They got what they wanted."

Ryan noticed that there was a glowing blood trail going from the room they were in to the front door. "Maybe not. Looks like Freakshow was telling the truth about them making an escape. I'm pretty sure whose blood that belongs to."

Eric sighed in frustration. "The question is how long will Danielle last out there without proper medical treatment?"

Horatio stomped back to Freakshow and grabbed him by what little of his collar was visible from the cube. "Where…is…Danielle?" he growled.

"I told you! In the Glades!"

"What is the machine for?"

"It's from a blood bank! I was hired to catch the Ghost Girl to extract the ectoplasm from her. I thought it could be found in her blood so I stole the machine and Skulker did the rest!"

"Where is Skulker?"

"Who knows? He just took the half-full – or is it half-empty? – bag of glowing blood and fled," Freakshow explained.

"Who hired you?" asked Frank.

"Someone named Vlad Plasmius."

Horatio recognized the name but put that away in his mind for the time being.

"Alright, I'm going to ask you one more time: Where is Danielle?"

"And I'm going to tell you one more time: I. Don't. Know," Freakshow replied mockingly imitating Horatio.

"Very well, Freakshow. But if this little girl dies you're looking at murder one, twenty-five to life," Horatio growled. "You better pray that you don't get the death penalty. Get him out of my sight!" The Feds came and arrested Freakshow (they decided to keep him in the cube) and read him his rights.

Walter seemed just as worried as Horatio and the rest of the gang. He noticed something outside in the grass.

"Horatio, the blood trail goes outside. It's faint but I think I see it outside," he informed the lieutenant. Horatio looked outside. Sure enough, there was a blood trail going out into the trees. It was faint, but he could see the blood trail glowing.

"Let's go everyone! The sooner we find these girls, the better," Horatio ordered. He and his team left the Feds to take care of Freakshow. The CSI's followed the trail only for it to go cold when they approached a small body of water. It was shallow enough for a girl as tall as Danielle to run through. Horatio sighed in frustration. Eric pounded his fist against a nearby tree.

"Now what? The trail's now cold," Eric growled.

Something then caught Delko's eye. A figure was standing on the other side of the water. The figure looked familiar. Eric shook his head in case he was hallucinating again. After Eric was shot in the head a few years ago, a piece of the bullet was still lodged in his brain causing him to occasionally hallucinate and have memory lapses.

"Do any of you see someone over there?" he asked pointing to the figure. The men looked up but saw nothing.

Ryan gave Eric a worried look. "Either you have better night vision than us or that bullet in your brain is acting up again. I don't see anyone."

Eric looked at the figure. He can see it all right. Then the figure vanished.

"Maybe it's a ghost?" suggested Walter. "After meeting Dani today, I'd say it's a possibility."

"Then how come only Delko can see it?" asked Frank. Walter shrugged.

Horatio, however, decided to give it a shot. "Okay. Eric, lead the way. Follow this figure. For all we know, it could be a ghost."

Frank looked at Horatio in disbelief. "Are you sure, H? It could lead us on a wild goose chase."

"After what I've witnessed today, I'm willing to take any possibilities," Horatio answered.

Ryan shrugged. "Now's not the time to be picky." They then followed Eric.

* * *

><p><strong>So many mysteries! Who sent the coordinates to H? Who subdued Lydia before the CSI's came? Who are the two figures Danielle and the girls met? Who did Delko see?<strong>

**All these questions will be answered in the next chapter! **

**Wow! That sounded like a soup opera narrator! **

**Keep those reviews coming people! Ignore the fact that this chapter is short. The next one will be longer...hopefully...**


	15. Chapter 15

**Sheesh! This was not easy to write! I'm coming down with a serious case of writer's block! **

**Danielle gets some unexpected help from two ghostly detectives...no, it's not Aiden and Angell this time! Can you guess who they are?  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 15<strong>

**Unexpected Help**

The two mysterious figures emerged from the bushes. They were two men. Both appeared in their early to mid-30s and slightly rugged. One was a little taller than the other. The tall one had what appeared to be an old gash on his forehead. He was also carrying a first aid kit. The shorter one had a backpack. If the girls looked closely, they could see a faint glow surrounding their bodies.

Leila, grabbing a branch for a weapon, stood in front of the other girls. "Who are you?" she demanded. "What do you want from us? Try anything on any of us and we'll scream loud enough to wake the dead!"

The shorter man snorted at that last comment. The tall one glared at him.

"Ignore him," the tall one said. "He's just a laidback idiot of a partner."

"Who are you?" asked Luna.

"I'm Jesse Cardoza," said the tall man, "and this is my partner Tim Speedle. You four are the missing girls that everyone in Miami's been talking about?"

"Yeah," said Luna. "How do you know?"

"Let's just say someone, who knows a friend who knows some friends who knows us sent us to you," Speed explained.

The four girls blinked in confusion. Jesse sighed. "Phantom sent us."

Danielle's face lit up. "Phantom? Danny sent you?"

Speed laughed. "_Sent_ us? He wanted to go himself!"

Jesse winced nervously. "We tried telling him that it's best if Tim and I went ourselves since we're familiar with the land."

"And the fact that Phantom's a 'shoot first, ask later' person," Speed added.

"But he wouldn't listen," said Jesse.

"Aiden, Angell, and Warrick had to restrain him so he wouldn't follow us," Speed finished.

"HOLD ON!" Leila interrupted. "Who the heck is Phantom?"

"He's my cousin," said Danielle. Jesse then opened up his first aid kit and started cleaning Danielle's wound. Sure, it was just a needle mark but after being covered by a ripped up pajama sleeve that's been exposed to the elements, it's best to clean it. Jesse then checked the other girls for injuries.

"Is Phantom a nickname or something?" asked Gwen.

"Uh…yeah. Let's go with that," Danielle stuttered. It's best that these girls don't know about her true identity unless the situation demanded it.

Leila ignored it for now. "If you guys were sent here to find us, how are the cops going to find us?"

Speed smirked. "I'll take care of that." He then literally vanished into thin air. Everyone, except Danielle and Jesse, screamed.

* * *

><p>Eric led the CSI's through the Everglades. This was becoming annoying. Every time Eric reached a spot to where the figure was standing, it would disappear.<p>

The others were getting frustrated too.

"This is turning into a wild goose chase," Frank complained.

"There's water and mud leaking into my shoes," said Walter.

"Okay, I'm open for a different idea," said Ryan as he swatted another mosquito off of his face. "I hate the outdoors."

Before he could stop an argument that's soon to break out, Horatio's cell phone started ringing. This was rare since finding a signal out in the Everglades is like finding a needle in a haystack.

The phone number was unfamiliar to the lieutenant. "This is Horatio Caine…"

"Lt. Caine?"

"Who am I speaking to?"

"I'm Danny Fenton, Danielle's…uh…cousin."

"Mr. Fenton," Horatio started. "How did you get this number?"

"Uh, Detective Taylor called me a few hours ago regarding Danielle and I got worried. He gave me your number. I'm calling now because I had to wait for my parents to go to bed," Danny explained. "Don't ask. It's a long story."

"So you do know Detective Taylor," Horatio clarified.

"Yeah, it's also a long story of how I met him," said Danny. "But back to what I was saying. Have you found Danielle yet?"

"We're still looking for her, Danny or should I address you as 'Phantom'?"

"Uh…um…what gave you that idea?" stuttered Danny.

"Danielle told us due to some circumstances regarding one of my officers. Mac confirmed that you and her are connected via human cloning," Horatio explained.

"Uh, okay," Danny hesitated. "Just don't tell anyone that she's a human clone otherwise the Feds will take her away or something."

"You have my word," Horatio promised.

"Thank you."

"H, do you think you can ask the Fenton kid if Delko is going crazy or something?" asked Frank. Eric glared at him.

Horatio nodded and returned to his phone. "Mr. Fenton, could you perhaps help us find your cousin?" he asked.

"As much as I want to, I can't. I have school in the morning," Danny said disappointedly.

"I understand. We've been following someone who may or may not be leading us to the missing girls."

"What does the guy look like?"

"How about you ask my associate, Eric Delko?" Horatio suggested. "He seems to be the only one who can see him."

"Okay, sure."

The redhead handed his phone to Eric. "This is Eric Delko."

"Hi, Mr. Delko? This is Danny Fenton."

Eric chuckled. "We pretty much know who you are, Danny. Danielle talks about you all the time."

Danny chuckled too. "So what's with this guy that only you can see?"

Eric stepped away from the group so they wouldn't hear him. "I don't know if I'm seeing things or just going crazy."

"Probably neither," Danny said casually. "Spend a week in Amity Park and you'll be singing a different tune."

Eric sighed. "I keep seeing my dead partner, Detective Tim Speedle. I don't know if I'm hallucinating or what but he's been popping up all over the Everglades all night." Eric then heard a snort and assumed that Danny was trying not to laugh.

"I can assure you, Eric, that you are neither crazy or hallucinating," said Danny trying to control his laughter.

Eric furrowed his eyebrows. "What do you mean?"

"In case you've forgotten, I'm Phantom," whispered Danny in case anyone was listening. "I deal with the ghosts of dead people all the time."

"So you're saying that I've been seeing Speed's ghost all night?" asked Delko.

"Yeah. Speedy likes to keep a low profile. Not much of a talker. Pretty cynical too," said Danny.

Eric chuckled again. "Yep. That sounds like Speed. But that doesn't explain how only I've been seeing him."

"I think he's just messing with you. You think he wants everyone to know he's a ghost? He told me how tight you guys were with him. To suddenly make an appearance to the entire department…well, how would that make the MDPD look to the public?"

"Good point," said Eric. "You send him?"

Danny sighed. "No. Aiden Burn and Jessica Angell sent him and Jesse Cardoza to you guys. I wanted to go but they wouldn't let me. Said that I'm a 'shoot first, ask later' kind of guy."

This surprised Eric. "Jesse's with him too?"

"Yeah. They're familiar with the Everglades which is why they wouldn't let me come with them," Danny said irritably. "Didn't want me to get lost on a school night."

"So, this figure I'm seeing…" Eric started.

"Most likely Speedy trying to lead you guys to Danielle," Danny finished.

"Great! Thanks, Fenton."

"Uh…when you find her, can you call me and let me know?" asked Danny.

"We'll call you as soon as we get her to a hospital," Eric promised.

Danny released a sigh of relief. "Thank you."

"No problem." The call ended. Eric went back to the guys and gave Horatio his phone back.

"Anything from the boy?" asked Horatio.

"The kid said to keep following the figure," Eric told his coworkers. He turned to Ryan. "And no, the bullet in my head is NOT acting up!" Ryan turned a faint shade of pink.

They heard someone whistle. The CSI's turned and saw a silhouette of a man waving at them, gesturing them to follow him.

Walter's eyes grew big. "Am I the only one who is seeing that?"

Ryan's eyes were just as big as Walter's. "Either my eye is getting infected again or I'm seeing the same thing you are."

Frank leaned in towards Horatio. "Is that who I think it is?"

Horatio was lost for words. "I…I don't know."

"Well, let's just not stand here. Follow him!" Frank ordered the rest of the team.

* * *

><p>Skulker barely made it back to Colorado. His suit is still suffering from damages Shane Casey caused when he was running rampant in the Ghost Zone. Recently Skulker heard that Phantom managed to catch Casey with the help of the most unlikely allies. For Skulker, that just made Phantom's pelt more valuable.<p>

Plasmius was waiting for him. When he saw what Skulker brought him, he was very disappointed. "I wanted you to _capture_ the girl! Not rob a blood bank!"

Skulker just smirked. "This is the Ghost Girl's blood. As you can see, there are traces of ectoplasm in her blood."

Plasmius took a closer look at the blood bag and frowned. "Even if I separate the blood from the ectoplasm, it's only enough to create one dose of the serum."

Skulker frowned. "Then you're going to have to wait! I'm still under repairs from that psychotic ghost you freed. You're birds are also out of commission."

"And Freakshow?"

"Most likely in Federal custody by now," Skulker answered. "His assistant has most likely been captured as well."

This information bewildered Plasmius. How can that little brat cause this much trouble? He should have known that Danielle had the same tendency to cause trouble as Danny.

Plasmius could see it now. Danielle has probably won over the entire Miami-Dade Police Department by now. Just like how Daniel won over the New York Crime Lab. Vlad wanted Mac Taylor to _suffer_ for making a fool out of him. Mac has enough evidence to convict Vlad on two murder cases (although the second murder wasn't completely Vlad's fault). To make matters worse, Vlad is also wanted in the Ghost Zone for killing a human (a serious felony in the Ghost Zone).

Vlad read online that a girl who escaped from Freakshow died in the Everglades. If Freakshow was lucky, he could go down for either negligent homicide or manslaughter. As long as no one knew that it was Vlad who hired Freakshow, he wouldn't be seeing prison in Florida.

Plasmius sighed. "Come, Skulker. Perhaps I could speed up your repairs. Lets discuss this in my lab, shall we?"

* * *

><p><strong>Oh great! What's Vlad thinking of now?<strong>

**Need help! I've been diagnosed with Writer's Block! What's a girl to do? Where's the Ghost Writer when you need him?**

**Review! I love your opinions!**


	16. Chapter 16

**New chapter! Yay! **

**Thank you jeanette9a for curing my writer's block! You're a sweetheart! **

**Enjoy!  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 16<strong>

**Search and Rescue**

The girls (except Danielle) were freaking out about Speed's disappearing act.

"That guy just disappeared!" Gwen exclaimed.

"He's a ghost!" Luna exclaimed.

Danielle nodded. "I'm surprised that you guys haven't noticed." Her vision was improving but only a little. She still felt weak after being forced to donate blood against her will. Not to mention she still felt light-headed.

Leila looked at her in shock. "You KNEW?" she asked exasperatedly.

"Would that explain why we could see her breath despite the warm temperature?" asked Luna.

Jesse looked impressed. "You catch on fast."

Gwen still didn't understand. "But how is she able to sense them in the first place? Is it like a sixth sense?"

"Uh, sure…let's go with that," Danielle said hastily. The other girls weren't convinced. They could tell she was hiding something.

Before they could force the issue further, Speed reappeared. "Jesse. Let's go. They're coming!"

"Right." Jesse got up.

Before they left, Speed gave Danielle his backpack. "Let's just say there's 'Fenton Insurance' in here and leave it at that." The two dead cops then literally disappeared into thin air.

A rustling in the bushes startled the girls. Leila grabbed the tree branch she used earlier and got in a battle position.

Eric Delko came stumbling out of the bushes with the other CSI's in tow.

"Danielle?"

"Yeah?"

Eric turned to the others. "They're here! They're alive!"

Horatio, Frank, Ryan, and Walter came out of the bushes and approached the girls.

"Ladies," Horatio started, "we're with the Miami-Dade Police. We're here to rescue you."

The girls instantly relaxed. "Thank God!" exclaimed Leila.

Frank pulled out a piece of paper. "Leila Saturn?"

"Yes. That's me."

"Luna Rivera?"

"Right here."

"Gwen Seabrook?"

"I'm okay."

Frank put the piece of paper back in his coat pocket. "They're all here, H."

"Okay. Girls, we're going to take you all to the hospital to get you checked out and then we'll send you home," Horatio said to the girls.

"Wait!" Luna protested. "Danielle needs help! She's lost a lot of blood!"

Horatio bent over to Danielle and inspected her injuries. "Alright. Walter, take her." He pulled out a radio. "This is Horatio Caine. I'm requesting paramedics at the Everglades ranger station. I have four young girls in need of medical attention, at least one in critical condition! Hurry!"

* * *

><p>Jesse and Speedle looked overhead, invisible, as they watched their former colleagues each carry one of the four girls back to the ranger station. Speed was impressed with how much his colleagues have changed since he died. His replacement, Ryan Wolfe, seemed promising. Frank hasn't changed a bit since the last time Speed saw him.<p>

Horatio has changed a lot. There was something about H that made Speed think that he's been to hell and back since Speed died.

Eric seemed to have changed the most. He seemed more serious, not much of a goofball like he used to be. They were more than partners; they were best friends. They did everything together from interviewing suspects to going clubbing when they were off duty. Speed only visited Delko once since his death. He was careful not to be seen by anyone but him. The reason Speed came back: to help with a case and stop the Audio/Visual Analyst from using his credit cards. Who ever heard of a dead guy with an active credit card?

Jesse turned to Speed. "You think her body will take normal blood?" he asked referring to Danielle.

Speed sighed. "I don't know. I've never heard of someone giving a half-ghost a transfusion."

Jesse tapped his chin, deep in thought. "Maybe we should contact Phantom. She's his clone so his biology should be similar to hers."

"Okay, but how many ghosts, who do NOT want to kill Phantom, are medically experienced in the Ghost Zone?" Speed asked skeptically.

Jesse shrugged. "Frostbite? He's gotten Phantom out of tight spots before. Let's ask him."

* * *

><p>It was getting close to midnight. Natalia, Yelina, and Calleigh were waiting at the ranger station for the guys to come back. Dr. Loman was also there in case they found the girls hurt or (hopefully not) dead.<p>

"Natalia, you need to stop pacing," said Calleigh. "If they ran into trouble they would call us for backup."

"I know," said Natalia. "I can't help but worry about them and those girls."

"You're really fond of Danielle, aren't you?" said Yelina.

"Well, yeah," Natalia answered exasperatedly. "She's a sweet girl. She's saved my life from…joining the afterlife…I guess." That sounded weird no matter how she said it.

Yelina chuckled. "I know how fond she is of you. She told me today that she wanted to stay with you or Horatio last night. She seemed pretty reluctant to come with me."

Calleigh agreed. "That seems to make sense. You and Horatio were the only ones she opened up to yesterday. It's only natural she would want to be with one of you two. You made her feel safe."

Natalia disagreed. "What about Frank? He was with her too."

"Frank doesn't soften up to anyone when he's on duty," said Calleigh. Yelina nodded agreeing.

Static was heard from the radio sitting on a nearby table. Horatio's voice was heard, requesting paramedics. He found the girls! Yelina released a sigh of relief while Calleigh and Natalia cheered and gave each other a high-five. Tom, who was lost in a book he was reading, left the building and got his gear ready.

Sirens were soon heard coming closer and closer to them. By the time they showed up, Horatio and the gang soon came out of the marshes. Horatio was carrying a strange backpack. Ryan, Eric, Walter, and Frank were each carrying a girl.

The CSI women gasped when they saw the girls' conditions. All of them were covered in mud, leaves, and twigs. Bug bites were visible on their faces and arms. Some of those bites looked like they came from leeches. Danielle looked the worst. She didn't have as many bug bites as the others, but she looked paler than she usually does.

Walter rushed her over to Tom. "She's lost a lot of blood. She needs a transfusion."

Tom checked her vital signs. He was surprised that all of her vital signs were going on strong, especially since she lost a lot of blood. Tom laid her on a gurney and followed her into an ambulance. Natalia also came along.

Frank, Ryan and Eric placed the other girls into separate ambulances and followed Danielle's. Horatio released a sigh of relief. After taking a nice long shower, he's going to be sleeping well tonight.

"Those girls better make it through the night," Frank grumbled. "The Glades destroyed my suit." Everyone laughed.

* * *

><p>After being briefed and given the green light about ghostly blood transfusions from Frostbite, Jesse and Speed began heading towards the Fenton Portal.<p>

"You realize that Phantom isn't old enough to donate blood, right?" asked a skeptical Speed.

"I don't care how young he is. He's the only chance Dani has," Jesse argued.

"I'm more scared of how he'll be when we drag him out of bed for an emergency blood transfusion."

"He'll get over it," Jesse said dismissively. "When we tell him that it's for his clone, he'll be more than cooperative."

Speed was still worried. "Maybe we should have told Frostbite to make sure Phantom doesn't follow us when we get the blood."

Realizing that Speed had a point, Jesse face-palmed. "Dammit!"

* * *

><p>"There!" said Plasmius as he put in the last screw in Skulker's ecto-skeleton. "That should do it."<p>

Skulker, who was currently in his 'green Smurf' form **(read the first story if you don't get the joke)**, was pacing back and forth on a lab table. "About time!"

"Just let it charge overnight and then return to Miami. Don't come back until you have captured Danielle," ordered Plasmius.

* * *

><p>Danielle was rushed to the ER while other doctors checked for any internal injuries on the other girls. Frank contacted the families to let them know their daughters were found alive and well. The girls were to stay in the hospital overnight for observation.<p>

Horatio waited in the waiting room when a familiar face came in from the emergency room. Dr. Alexx Woods, former Medical Examiner for the crime lab, looked very concerned. Horatio's heart skipped a beat, thinking the worst for Danielle.

"Alexx?"

"She's lost a lot of blood, Horatio," she explained gently. "We don't have the right kind of blood for her."

"What's her type?"

"O positive but there's something extra in her blood and we can't identify it," Alexx continued worriedly.

"That 'something extra' is a substance called ectoplasm," Horatio explained. "I'll fill you in on the details later. Will Danielle's body accept normal blood?"

"I don't know if her body will accept normal blood and I don't want to take that risk on such a little girl," she said solemnly. "Her best bet is to find someone else who has that same glowing green whatever-you-called-it in his or her blood."

* * *

><p><strong>I don't know much about human anatomy much less ghost anatomy, give me a break! I don't know how it works for halfas like Dani!<br>**

**I'm aware that you must be 17 or older (and weigh over 110 lbs.) to donate blood****. Well, since Vlad obviously won't be giving any blood soon it's up to Danny, whether he's old enough or not!**


	17. Chapter 17

**New chapter! Yay! Bring on the confetti! **

**I enjoyed writing this chapter. I miss Alexx Woods! She was like the mom of Horatio's team.  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 17<strong>

**Hospital**

For the first time in a long time, Horatio was stuck between a rock and a hard place. He could let Alexx give Danielle regular human blood but he didn't want to risk her health to see if it would work. On the other hand, he could contact Phantom and see if he's willing to donate, regardless of his age. But then there's blood type. Even if Danielle is a clone, will her blood match Danny's?

Horatio's thoughts then went to the figure that led the team to the girls. He knows he's been dead for almost ten years, but Horatio was positive that that silhouette belonged to the late Tim Speedle. How could that be? Horatio was there when he died. He even held Speed's hand as he bled to death. Speed's poor gun maintenance was what led to his downfall. It's also the reason H hired Wolfe: Wolfe cleaned his gun a lot due to OCD.

Horatio decided to stay at the hospital for any updates on Danielle's condition. Looks like his shower and good night sleep will have to wait.

The families of the other girls came to see their daughters and thanked the lieutenant for finding them. Despite their protests the doctors insisted that the girls spend the night at the hospital for observation.

Alexx and Natalia soon approached Horatio who practically looked dead on his feet. "H, why don't you go home? You've earned it. I'll stay here and watch over Danielle," Natalia offered. "And, no offense, you smell like something an alligator threw up."

Horatio smiled at her little joke. "I prefer to wait here, thank you," he said calmly.

Alexx crossed her arms and gave him a stern-mother look. "I agree with Natalia. You've been wandering around the Everglades all night. You don't need to worry about Danielle. You need to worry about yourself. Now I want you, Horatio, to go home, take a nice hot shower and get a good night sleep. And that's the doctor's orders," she said like a mother scolding her child.

Horatio, knowing there's no point in arguing with Alexx, chuckled. "Yes, Doctor Woods," he laughed.

"Good. Now scoot! Don't come back until you get washed, eaten something, and have gotten a good night's rest," Alexx ordered. Horatio silently chuckled, bid Alexx and Natalia good night, and went home. Everyone who knew Alexx back when she was the ME for the crime lab knew that it was pointless to argue with her. She was not afraid to scold anyone, not even Horatio, about their health. In a way, she was like a mother figure for every member of the team. The redhead was glad to know someone who still cared about his team.

* * *

><p>Alexx was just finishing her rounds when she was called to the front lobby. When she got there, two men in trench coats were standing there in the lobby waiting for her. The high collars and hats concealed their identities. One of them was carrying an organ transplant cooler.<p>

"May I help you?" Alexx asked nervously.

"We have Type O blood for a Miss Danielle Masters," the tall man said.

Alexx gave them both a skeptical look. "Uh huh. And why should I trust you two?"

"Because this kind of blood is only found in two other people and one of them was a match and was more than willing to donate," the shorter man said. "Although he wasn't happy that we woke him in all hours of the night to do it."

Alexx silently gasped at the second man's voice. It couldn't be! It's impossible! "Timmy?" she gasped.

The shorter man lifted his hat enough for Alexx to get a glimpse of his face. "Long time, no see, Alexx."

"Oh my God!" she gasped. She leaned against the abandoned front lobby desk for support. "It's impossible! You can't be him! I performed the autopsy myself!" she whispered.

"Which I must thank you for doing an excellent job as usual," Speed complimented.

Alexx turned to the other man. "And you?"

The man lifted his hat a little as well. He smiled sheepishly. "Surprised?"

Alexx covered her mouth. "Jesse? But…how? I mean, I know what happened to you…but how are you two…here?"

"It's a long, sad story," said Speed. "Right now, we need you to give this to Danielle Masters. Don't worry about the glowing; it's supposed to do that. I trust her blood type is O?"

Alexx could only nod.

"Alright. And don't worry. We have written permission from one of the donor's 'guardians' that he's allowing the donor to donate," Speed added pulling out a document with Danny Phantom's signature and someone else's signature, someone named "Frostbite".

"Great!" Jesse exclaimed. He handed her the cooler. "The blood bag is in there. Good luck!" They both left the building and literally disappeared. It took Alexx several minutes to pull herself together. She grabbed the cooler and rushed to ICU to perform the transfusion.

* * *

><p>Danielle woke up in another white room. <em>'I'm back in the hospital? How?'<em>

"Look! She's coming to!" a voice cried out.

As her vision cleared up, she realized she was in the same room as the other girls. Natalia was sitting at the foot of her bed. She looked up and smiled at the ghost girl.

"Thank God you're alright!" she exclaimed.

"N-Natalia?" Danielle croaked.

"You're in the hospital, sweetie. Don't move. You have an IV in your arm."

Danielle looked at her arm and, sure enough, there was a needle sticking out of her arm again. She sat up slowly. She seemed to feel better. Her body still felt like Jell-o but she didn't feel lightheaded anymore.

"What happened?" she asked.

"You passed out from blood loss last night," Gwen answered casually. "When we got to the paramedics you were out cold."

"The girls told me you motivated them to escape from Freakshow," Natalia said. She then gave Danielle a friendly smirk. "Horatio's little talk rub off on you?"

Danielle blushed and looked away. The CSI's eyebrows went up. "Oh, look! Your face has a little more color! That's great! Looks like the transfusion worked."

The ghost girl's eyes furrowed and looked back at Natalia. "Transfusion? What transfusion?"

"Dr. Woods came in last night and hooked up a bag of glowing green and red blood to the machine," Luna explained. "She said that it came from an anonymous donor."

"Something was eating her though," Leila piped up. "Dr. Woods hardly spoke a word during the whole thing. She looked like she just saw a ghost."

Danielle and Natalia exchanged glances and laughed. Leila had no idea how right she was.

"After what I've seen these past few nights, I wouldn't be surprised," Gwen muttered.

Danielle calmed down and made a reminder to thank Danny next time she saw him. Natalia then stood up and walked to the door. "I'll be right back. I'm going to let them know you're awake."

"Natalia?"

She stopped and looked at the clone. "Yeah?"

"If…if you see Yelina, can you tell her I'm sorry?" Danielle asked hesitantly.

Natalia furrowed her eyebrows. "Sorry? Sorry for what?"

"For getting Ray Junior's clothes muddy."

* * *

><p>Horatio arrived at the hospital first thing in the morning. He didn't show it, but he felt refreshed and restored after eating, sleeping, and bathing. He got a call that morning from Alexx that an anonymous donor sent her some blood mixed with ectoplasm for Danielle. Horatio's thoughts immediately went to the Fenton boy. How Danny was able to pull it off, Horatio didn't know. Judging by the sound in Alexx's voice on the phone, he believed that a ghost must have delivered it.<p>

Upon entering, Horatio asked for Alexx. Several minutes crawled by and Alexx approached him.

She smirked at him. "You haven't changed a bit since I left the morgue," she said cockily.

Horatio smiled, looking at the floor. "You know when it comes to kids, I'm all hands on deck."

Alexx returned that smiled. "True. Danielle is really improving. As soon as I gave her the transfusion, her recovery sped up tenfold. By the time I checked on her this morning, it was like she never got hurt in the first place. It was the most unusual recovery I've ever seen!"

Horatio sighed. "Is there somewhere private we can discuss this?" Alexx led him to her office. "What I am about to tell you is the most farfetched information you'll ever hear. I must assure you, however, it is all true."

Horatio then spent the next half-hour explaining to Alexx about Danielle's origins. How she was a product of human cloning, her "cousin" helping her in times of need, and how she became part of the investigation with Freakshow. To Horatio's surprise, Alexx began to pale.

"Alexx? Are you alright?" he asked concerned.

"Yeah…I'm fine," she whispered. Horatio gave her his "tell-me-the-truth" look. The former ME sighed. "I thought I was hallucinating. Even if I told you guys, I thought you wouldn't believe me because…well…it's just impossible."

Horatio cocked his head. "What makes you say that?"

Alexx pinched the bridge of her nose. "I can't believe I'm telling you this. I think Tim Speedle and Jesse Cardoza delivered the blood last night."

The redhead's blood froze. "Speed? Jesse? Are…are you sure?"

"It would make sense after what you just told me," Alexx said.

Horatio was speechless. That would explain the mysterious backpack he found with the girls last night. Did Speed and Jesse leave the backpack behind? Was it a calling card? The team hasn't had a chance to examine it yet.

"Alexx, this conversation does NOT leave this room," Horatio said sternly.

* * *

><p>The girls' families picked up their respective daughters to take them home. Danielle was allowed to say good-bye to them as long as a nurse accompanied her.<p>

The three human girls approached the ghost girl.

"Where are your parents?" asked Gwen.

"Uh…they're…um…running late?" Danielle stuttered. The three exchanged looks and dragged her away from the adults. "Hey! What are you doing?"

"We know you're hiding something," Leila accused. "We're not leaving this hospital until you spill."

Danielle gulped. _'Now what?'_

* * *

><p><strong>OH GREAT! Now the other girls are suspicious! <strong>

**Dani really is Danny's clone. Either she's a lousy liar or the people of Miami are just smarter than the people of Amity Park!**

**Relax, folks. Danny will make an appearance in the end. He won't appear in person but that's why man invented Skype! Think about it. After donating blood, do you really think he's up for a visit to Miami? I'm sure it will take awhile for him to recover even if he is a halfa.**_  
><em>


	18. Chapter 18

**Thank you all for reviewing this story! I've come to a conclusion: I'M A GENIUS! **

**The final showdown begins! Enjoy!  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 18<strong>

**Should She Stay?**

Walter entered the lab, ready to process the mysterious backpack that Horatio found with the girls last night. Quite an unusual backpack. The thing was metallic silver with a green F in the center of a slightly lighter green fireball.

"Hey, Walter!" Ryan greeted as he entered the lab. "Found anything interesting in the backpack yet?"

"I was just about to get started on it," Walter replied.

"How are the girls?"

"Pretty good actually. Natalia called and told me to spread the word. Did you hear about Danielle's mysterious blood donor?" asked Walter.

"That Danny Phantom donated at the last minute? Yeah, H was thinking that might have been him," Ryan said putting on his lab coat. "I also heard that two very unlikely – and dead – people delivered it to the hospital last night."

Walter snorted. "Two ghosts? Yeah right! There's no way Phantom could have been able to fly all the way to Miami just to donate blood and have two ghosts deliver it."

Ryan then became serious. "Walter, one of them was Jesse's ghost."

Walter looked up. "Jesse? Seriously?" he asked in disbelief. Ryan nodded. "Jesse's…a ghost?" Ryan nodded again.

Walter was completely astounded. Jesse used to work for the MDPD but transferred to Los Angeles in 1997. He came back several years later to join the CSI's. Walter, who used to be a night shift CSI, transferred to the day shift and he and Jesse became fast friends. The two would often play basketball together. It wasn't until a psychopathic killer filled the crime lab with Halon gas, causing everyone in the building to pass out from lack of oxygen. When Jesse passed out he hit his head, causing a subdural hemorrhage (brain injury). Despite everyone's best efforts to save him, he died. Walter was especially hurt by Jesse's passing; the two were supposed to play basketball that day after their shift. In the end, the entire team came and played a game in Jesse's memory.

"Walter?"

Walter snapped out of his daze. "Huh?"

"Are you going to be okay?" asked a very concerned Wolfe.

"Y-yeah. Let's get to work," Walter stuttered. The two opened the backpack to find the strangest weapons they've ever seen. They found what appeared to be a fishing pole, Wrist Rays, ecto-guns, a device that said "Fenton Peeler" on it, silver and green belts, and another Thermos.

"Ryan?"

"Yeah?"

"What the hell is all this junk?"

Ryan looked through the backpack some more. He found what appeared to be a manual in the front pocket. He flipped through it. "It's a weapon's manual. It shows how each weapon works, how it effects ghosts, and it also includes directions."

Walter was impressed. "A beginner's guide to ghost hunting."

Eric and Calleigh then suddenly rushed into the room.

"We have to get to Miami General now!" Eric panted trying to catch his breath.

"Why? What's wrong?" asked Ryan.

"Remember that robot ghost?" asked Calleigh.

"You mean that Terminator reject with the flaming Mohawk that attacked the morgue the other day?" Walter guessed.

"Yeah," Delko answered. "He just attacked Miami General Hospital. Danielle, Natalia, and H are there right now."

* * *

><p>Danielle has never felt so trapped since, well, last night. The three girls towered over her, waiting for her to say something.<p>

"Whatever it is, we won't tell anyone," assured Luna. "We promise."

"Yeah," Gwen agreed, "you helped us escape last night and we saved your skin. Isn't that what friends do for each other?"

That caught Danielle off guard. "F-Friends?"

Leila sighed. "As strange as you are, yes, we're friends."

This was something Danielle was not expecting. Could she trust them with her secret even though she's only known them for a day? And even if she did tell them, would they still accept her? Danielle was swamped. It's true that she was friends with Danny's friends but now that she thought about it, she's never made any of her own friends before. Should she stay in Miami to be with them?

There was a problem too. Where would she stay? She had no birth record, no Social Security, nothing! What is she supposed to say? That she's a human clone and should be treated like a normal person? The Feds would take her away faster than you can say "Ghostbusters". She'll be lucky if she was placed in a foster home.

"Well, I…" Danielle began only to be interrupted by her ghost sense.

"There's that blue stuff again," Gwen acknowledged. Danielle shifted her eyes back and forth, looking for a chance to get away and go ghost.

"Last time that happened, those two guys appeared out of nowhere," Luna recalled.

"It's got to be a sixth sense," said Gwen.

"We've got to get out of here," Danielle said urgently.

_KABOOM!_

An explosion was heard from where the girls were talking. Someone or something blew a gigantic hole in the front door of the lobby. Debris was scattered everywhere. Their parents were either unconscious or moaning and bleeding on the floor.

"MOM! DAD!" the girls cried simultaneously.

Skulker then appeared out of thin air. "Hmmm…looks like none of these humans were being overshadowed by the Ghost Girl."

"W-What the h-h-hell are you t-t-talking about?" one of the parents asked.

Danielle took this opportunity to flee to the bathroom.

"Hey! Wait for us!" the girls cried.

As soon as Danielle was in the safety of the women's bathroom, she checked to make sure no one else was there.

"What the hell are you doing?"

Danielle jumped at the sound of Leila's voice. She turned around and saw them standing there as well.

"What are you doing here?"

"You're friends with those cops from last night, right?" asked Luna.

"Yeah."

"Then call them!" Gwen exclaimed. "They'll be able to stop Dog the Bounty Hunter back there."

Danielle sighed. It's time to come clean. If they were really her friends, then they would accept her and keep it a secret, right?

* * *

><p>Horatio, Natalia, and Alexx ran as fast as they could towards the explosion. Horatio called Eric and told him to get the rest of the team to Miami General as fast as they could.<p>

They entered the ruins of the front lobby. The missing girls' parents were lying on the ground, bleeding. After a thorough examination from Alexx, it was safe to say they were not seriously hurt. Some needed stitches, though. Skulker was wandering around the lobby turning over furniture, looking for something.

He turned his head toward the three adults. "Where is the Ghost Girl?" he demanded.

"Oh my God," Alexx gasped.

Horatio and Natalia had their guns aimed at the robot.

"Like hell we're going to tell you!" Natalia hissed.

"I suggest you surrender now, my friend," Horatio demanded.

Skulker laughed. "Surrender? To you?"

Horatio shot his gun before Skulker had a chance to become intangible. The bullet didn't do much but it left a small mark.

"Hey! I just got this suit fixed!"

"Oh, boo-hoo! You can always fix it again," Natalia retorted sarcastically.

Skulker studied Natalia and Horatio closely. "If I recall correctly, those useless Vultures told me that the Ghost Girl is quite fond of you two. I wonder if she'll come out of hiding if I take one of you hostage?"

Five gunshots hit Skulker in the back. He turned around and saw Frank, Calleigh, Eric, Walter, and Ryan aiming their recently fired guns at him.

"No wonder the Ghost Girl is hiding!" Ryan exclaimed. "I would be hiding too if a Terminator wannabe was hunting me."

"Careful Ryan," warned Calleigh. "He has more ammo than the ballistics lab. He won't hesitate to fire at us."

Skulker then looked at Calleigh and grinned evilly. "You were with her last night. She might come for you."

"DON'T EVEN THINK ABOUT!" Eric roared. Skulker then fired at Eric. He was blown back against the Hummer.

"ERIC!" Calleigh rushed over to Eric's side. There were glowing restraints on his wrists and ankles.

Ryan, Walter, Horatio, Natalia and Frank then fired again at Skulker. He turned intangible and laughed at their futile efforts. Walter then had an idea. He dashed to his Hummer and got out the silver backpack.

"Walter! Why the hell did you bring that?" Ryan asked exasperatedly.

"That robot is a ghost, right?"

"Yeah. So?"

Walter pulled out an ecto-pistol and the manual. He went to the chapter on said weapon. Following the instructions, he charged up the weapon and aimed it at the robot.

"Walter, do you really think this is the time to test these weapons?" asked Ryan.

"Better late than never," Walter replied. He fired the pistol at Skulker. This time it did more damage than regular bullets. The CSI's eyes widened. "Wow!" Walter exclaimed in disbelief.

Skulker, not wanting to be defeated by mere humans, fired restraints on all of them, including Alexx. "Since the girl is not coming out now, I might as well take all of you with me! That will draw her out," Skulker threatened.

* * *

><p><strong>Send in the parade! I'm on a roll! <strong>

**I've been pondering whether or not Dani should stay in Miami until the events of Phantom Planet take place! You've been reading the story! What do you think? I don't want to make a wrong decision and get flames instead of praise. **

**What do you think? Should Dani stay in Miami?**


	19. Chapter 19

**At last a new chapter! The final battle! The end of it is similar to _CSI Phantom _but... I ran out of ideas. -_-**

** One more chapter to go!  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 19<strong>

**New Friends**

Gunfire could be heard from the bathroom where Danielle and the girls were hiding. Her thoughts immediately went to Natalia who was still in the hospital. Her mind was made up.

"Okay. I'll tell you," Danielle said. "Or rather show you." The girls looked at each other in bewilderment. Danielle's then scared and worried look on her face morphed into one of confidence and determination. "I've always wanted to say this. GOING GHOST!" Dani's black and white outfit replaced her hospital gown. Dani Phantom now stood in front of the girls; their eyes were as big as dinner plates.

Leila was the first to speak. "Wow! This is a 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer' moment."

Gwen's shocked expression melted into amazement. "Awesome! That was the single coolest thing I've ever seen!"

"Danielle? Is that really you?" asked a bewildered Luna.

"When I'm like this, it's Dani Phantom," said Dani, "with an 'i'."

"So, you're like a superhero?" Leila clarified.

"Uh…I'm more of the rogue hero type. I travel around, making a name for myself," Dani explained.

"That explains why you said you ran away from home," Luna realized. "And why your parents aren't here to take you home."

Dani scowled. "I have a 'dad' but I hate his guts. He's tried to kill me twice. My 'cousin' is the only one I can turn to when I need help."

"You mean Phantom?" asked Leila.

Dani nodded. They seem to be taking this well.

"So that blue mist stuff," said Gwen, "is it like your 'Spidey Sense' or something?"

"Ghost sense," Dani corrected. "It goes off when there's a ghost nearby. I can do a lot more than just that." More gunfire was heard outside. Dani turned invisible and intangible and phased through the wall.

"So we agree," Gwen confirmed bluntly, "we speak of this to no one, right?"

Luna nodded. "If someone found out, she'll be dragged off to a lab to be experimented on and dissected like a frog."

Leila also agreed. "Buffy's friends kept her secret. Why not do the same with her?"

Gwen then smiled. "I can't believe we're friends with a superhero!"

The three then left the bathroom to see their new friend in action.

* * *

><p>Skulker began advancing towards an immobilized Horatio. Might as well start with the leader of the pack.<p>

"GET AWAY FROM HIM!"

A ghost ray blasted Skulker to the side. Dani appeared and stood in front of the lieutenant. Her hands were glowing with ectoplasm, ready to fire again.

Skulker got up and smirked. "At last. The Ghost Girl has appeared. My employer is eager to see you again."

"No way!" said Dani. "I'm not going anywhere with you! And you're not taking Horatio or his friends either! They've lost too much already!" Images of those Horatio cared about flashed through his head at Dani's last statement.

Skulker aimed one of his weapons at the ghost girl. "You're coming whether you like it or not!"

"Tell my 'dad' that he can – and I can't believe I'm saying this – go to hell!" Dani retorted darkly.

Skulker smirked. "Such atrocious language! Someone needs to teach you some manners!" He aimed a weapon that appeared from his arm at Dani.

"Which is why I said 'I can't believe I'm saying this'. You really need to pay attention," Dani said matter-of-factly. Skulker fired his weapon but missed. Dani grabbed Horatio, turning them both intangible, and sank into the floor.

"HORATIO!" All of the CSI's saw before their eyes their beloved lieutenant sink into the floor and out of sight.

"What the hell did she do to him?" asked a very freaked out Frank.

"WHERE the hell did she take him?" asked an equally freaked out Ryan.

"Guys?"

The five officers jumped as Dani and Horatio phased out of the ground. Everyone outside paled.

"How?"

"When?"

"What?"

"Huh?"

Horatio gave them a rare smirk. "Intangibility is quite handy in situations like these."

Dani's hands then started glowing green. "Hold still." She grabbed hold of the bindings on Horatio's wrists and pulled. After several pulls and tugs she finally freed his wrists. She then did the same for his ankles. "Are you okay?"

Horatio rubbed his wrists, getting the blood flowing back in them. "Yes," he turned to Dani with a kind smile, "Thank you."

Dani can only smile back.

"Uh…H!" Walter called. Horatio turned. Walter turned his head to the backpack that was sitting next to him. "The backpack! It has what we need to stop this guy!"

The redhead and the whitehead approached Walter. While Dani was getting the restraints off of Walter, Horatio looked through the backpack's contents. He looked at Dani incredulously.

"Don't look at me like that!" Dani scolded. "I never had the chance to look through it last night. Tim and Jesse just left it there for me for some reason."

Horatio filed the information for later and grabbed an ecto-gun. He turned it on and charged it. He didn't even look at the manual. He then aimed the gun at Skulker but he had a trump card.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," he said cockily. "Unless you wish to harm your friends." He held up Natalia and Alexx in each of his hands.

"Get this robo-freak away from me!" Alexx exclaimed.

"Hey! The Terminator called! He wants his armor back!" Natalia taunted Skulker.

Horatio cursed. How was he going to hit Skulker without hurting the two women? He then remembered that there was an odd-looking fishing pole in the backpack.

He turned around to his coworkers. Most of them had been freed. Dani was currently working on Eric's bindings. Horatio turned to Walter and tossed him the fishing pole.

"Walter, time to go fishing."

Walter nodded. He cast his line at Skulker but it snagged Alexx's scrubs instead. Seizing the opportunity, he started reeling her in. It soon became a game of tug-o-war.

"I got a big one!" exclaimed Walter. "This will be one fish story no one will believe!" Frank, Ryan and Calleigh grabbed hold of Walter and help him pull Alexx out of Skulker's grip. Dani flew up to Skulker and grabbed hold of Natalia. Like Horatio before, Dani turned Natalia intangible and freed her from Skulker. The two then phased through the floor out of harm's way. They then reappeared in front of the CSI's.

Natalia shivered. "Oooohhh…that felt weird!"

Dani then flew back to fight Skulker. She fired several disks of ecto-energy from her hands and feet. Each blast was a direct hit, causing the robotic ghost to drop Alexx. Dani caught her and brought her to the rest of the team. Skulker, having enough of this ecto-brat, fired a net at Dani and electrocuted her.

Natalia, without thinking, grabbed the Fenton Peeler and activated it. Her entire body was encased in full-body armor. "Okay. This is weird," she said flatly.

Calleigh looked her over. "I don't know. I say it looks good on you." Calleigh saw one last ecto-gun in the backpack and smiled. "Now, they're talking my language!" She grabbed the gun and threw the Wrist Rays to Ryan, Eric and Frank.

Frank inspected his new weapon. "What the hell is this?"

Walter looked through the manual. "According to this manual, that is the Fenton Wrist Ray. 'An accessory of pain' this technically functions like an ecto-pistol and packs a powerful punch."

"Okay, so how do we get it to work?" Eric asked as he pressed a bunch of random buttons on the device. Without warning, the Wrist Ray fired at one of the Hummers, literally melting one of the tires into a black sticky goop.

"Nice going, genius," Frank said sarcastically. "That's coming out of your next paycheck. You know that, right?"

Ryan rolled his eyes and aimed his weapon at Skulker who was now trying to shock Dani unconscious. Ryan fired the weapon, breaking the net, which set Dani free. The rest of the team followed suit and fired repeatedly at Skulker. At this point, Skulker's ecto-skeleton was now more damaged than before.

Walter cast the Fenton Fisher again. This time it caught the collar of Skulker's shirt. Dani grabbed the Fisher and flew around Skulker until he was completely tied up. Natalia approached the robot and aimed her weapon. "Your battle suit is too damaged to do squat. Do you wanna surrender now or after we disassemble you bolt by bolt?"

Skulker just glowered at the woman. Dani approached him and took off his head. Eric saw two stubby legs sticking out of the head.

"What the hell is sticking out of the head?" Eric asked. Everyone gathered to see Skulker's true nature.

Dani pulled out a green Smurf. She flashed a confident smile at the green Smurf. "Not so tough without your battle suit, huh?"

"Déjà vu!" Skulker squeaked.

"I would throw you to the ground and step on you like a cockroach but I know you. You'll just phase through the ground and run off to my 'dad,'" Dani said.

Horatio walked up to Dani with a Thermos in his hands (the same one from New York). "I believe you should return home, Skulker. I think Phantom is probably wondering where you are right now."

"I refuse to return to the Ghost Zone till I complete my mission!" squeaked Little Skulker.

"I'm not going back to Vlad!" Dani exclaimed. "Not now, not ever!"

Horatio knelt to Dani's eye-level and glowered at the green Smurf. "You listen, you little pipsqueak. If you ever go near this girl again, I'll take your precious armor and take it apart and scatter every last piece, every last screw across the state. Then I will make it my personal mission to squash you like the cockroach that you are!" he thundered.

Skulker gulped. The way the redhead threatened him made Skulker pale a slightly lighter green. Horatio then sucked the armor into the Thermos. He then turned to his team to see that they were not harmed. A little freaked out, but not hurt (except Eric who had a big lump on his head from the Hummer).

"Aren't you going to suck Tom Thumb into the Thermos too?" Frank asked.

Ryan chuckled. "I think H has something better in mind."

"COOL!"

Everyone turned and saw Luna, Leila, and Gwen tackle Dani to the ground in a group hug.

"Amazing!"

"You really are a superhero!"

"We HAVE to hang out!"

Horatio interrupted them. "Ladies," he started, "while I'm glad that you're now friends with Miss Phantom, you do understand that you MUST keep this a secret from everyone. You mustn't tell anybody, not your parents, not your teachers, no one. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir," the three said in unison.

Luna then piped up. "We know what will happen if we told. She would be taken away and become a lab rat."

"Crime rate's pretty high, even with your help," Leila said. "Think about how fast it will drop if she's on your side! Why tell anyone if it means her being taken away? My lips are sealed."

Gwen just shrugged. "Why bother telling anyone? They wouldn't believe me anyway."

Dani looked at them in disbelief. "You guys really want to be friends with someone like me?"

Leila smiled. "Totally! This is just like TV!"

Luna nodded. "Are you planning on staying in Miami? It would be nice to hang out with you."

"Yeah!" Gwen exclaimed. "We could check out all of the haunted places in Miami."

This caught Dani off-guard. Stay in Miami? What about Amity Park? Danny? She wanted to go back to Indiana, yes, but she'll never feel safe knowing that Vlad was the mayor and could probably kidnap her from her bed.

Seeing her indecisiveness, Horatio stepped in. "Perhaps Dani should talk to her…'cousin' about it."

"Okay," said Dani, "but what am I going to do about Skulker?"

H gave the little green ghost a smirk.

* * *

><p>"H! I found one!" Eric exclaimed.<p>

Horatio nodded, looking down at the grass. "Dani, you know what to do."

Dani, carrying a frozen Little Skulker (Natalia threw him into a freezer for a few hours), flew over to Eric. She held Skulker up to Eric's face.

"Alright, Skulker. It's time for you to get a real 'taste' of Miami," said Eric smugly.

Dani then dropped Skulker into an alligator's open mouth. "Enjoy the Everglades!"

"Nooooooo…" Skulker yelled as the alligator closed his mouth. The gator then swallowed his little snack.

Dani and Eric then went back to Horatio.

"How long will it take Skulker to get out of him?" Dani asked.

"Not sure," Eric answered, "but if he wants to go back to Plasmius there's only one way out of that gator and it's not the mouth."

* * *

><p><strong>Yay! <strong>

**I'm aware that Skulker could simply go intangible but I was thinking of the episode 'Micro-management' when I was writing the last part of this chapter.**

**I promise you that Danny will make an appearance in the last chapter!  
><strong>


	20. Chapter 20

**At last! The final chapter is here! Whew! That was harder than it looked!**

**Thank you all for reviewing! Keep it up and tell your friends!  
><strong>

* * *

><p><strong>Chapter 20<strong>

**New Home…for Now**

With a little help from Mac, Horatio and Danielle finally knew how to contact Danny via Skype. After getting everyone checked out from the hospital and bidding Alexx good-bye, Horatio took Danielle back to the crime lab (he picked up Danielle's original clothes from Yelina, now clean). While Frank would fill the media in about the kidnappings and the attack on the crime lab and Miami General (without mentioning the ghosts, of course) everyone else went to the ballistics lab to test out the strange new Fenton gadgets.

Horatio and Danielle were in the Audio/Visual Lab getting ready to contact Danny. The connection was launched and soon Danny's image appeared on the large screen.

"Hi there!" Danny greeted.

"Danny!" Danielle greeted back.

"Hey, cuz! Heard you've been having quite an adventure in Florida! How's it going?"

"Great actually. I've made a lot of new friends! This is Lieutenant Horatio Caine. He's one of my new friends," said an eager Danielle.

Danny waved to Horatio. "Nice to meet you, Lieutenant."

"Likewise, Mr. Fenton," Horatio replied looking at the floor.

"Uh, I don't mean to be rude but does he always do that?" Danny asked Danielle.

Danielle saw that Horatio was not looking directly at the screen. She turned back to Danny. "Yeah, he does that a lot. Don't worry about it."

Horatio silently chuckled, silently forgiving the halfas.

"So, uh… what's this all about?" Danny asked getting to the point.

"Danielle here is feeling conflicted about returning to Amity Park," Horatio started. "I'm aware that her father, Vlad Masters aka Vlad Plasmius, is the mayor of your town. Is that correct?"

Danny frowned. "Yeah. He's one seriously crazed up fruit loop. When he's not trying to make me his own son – it's a long story, by the way – he's trying to kill my dad so he can marry my mom – also a long story."

"Is it true that Vlad is after Danielle?" asked Horatio.

Danny nodded. "Yeah. For some reason, he started attacking us every chance he got."

"When did he start attacking you?"

"During Dani's last visit to Amity Park a couple of months ago. She came to visit…" Danny paused to think, "…a month and a half after I came home from New York. He's after Dani because she's lasted longer than the other clones. The others melted into puddles of ectoplasm. I'm surprised he's still after her after I stabilized her."

"Why do you think he's still after Danielle?"

Danny thought long and hard before answering. "The serum. Vlad has been trying to use a special serum on Detective Taylor to turn him into a half-ghost hybrid. Vlad thinks people who have endured a hard life are capable to obtaining ghost powers. He thought Mac is the perfect candidate because he's a war hero and whatnot.

"My friend, Tucker, got a hold of a copy of his notes. Vlad's been using Danielle's leftover ectoplasm from the time I stabilized her to make a serum that will turn a person into a halfa. Unfortunately, it's not working. Last time he tried it, the serum killed a woman. I'm guessing he wanted Danielle because he was running low on ectoplasm. When Casey destroyed what's left of it, I guess Vlad got desperate and hired Freakshow to kidnap those girls. Of course the henchmen Vlad hired are pretty much blind idiots and kept getting the wrong girl."

Horatio sighed. He knew that he was also a perfect candidate for Vlad's little "experiment." The redhead's life had been nothing but a hellish nightmare. A lot of people he cared about were murdered. He murdered his abusive father, who murdered his mother. His mentor from the Bomb Squad was blown up trying to disarm a necklace bomb. The Mala Noche gang murdered his brother in Brazil. Speed was killed during a jewelry store robbery. Jesse died during a gas attack on the lab. The Mala Noche also killed Marisol, one of the few bright lights in Horatio's life. Eric, Kyle, Yelina and Ray Jr. are all he has left. Yes, Horatio seemed like a perfect test subject.

"So…um…" Danny hesitated. "What are you going to do now, Danielle? Do you want to stay in Miami?"

Danielle hesitated. "I don't know. I mean, I want to live with you, Danny, but how are we going to explain me to your parents without telling them about our secret?"

Danny frowned again. "I still haven't told them about me yet. And then there's Vlad to deal with."

"When are you going to tell them?" Horatio suddenly asked.

"…I don't know," Danny answered solemnly. "I'll tell them when I'm ready. I don't know WHEN that will be but I will tell them eventually."

Horatio nodded. "How about Danielle stays here in Miami till you come clean about Phantom?" he asked. "That way, she'll have a place to stay and she'll be safe from Vlad. She's made many friends over the past three days and I know that they don't want her to leave town anytime soon."

"Well, I'm not exactly her parent or guardian but I guess it's okay," Danny reluctantly agreed knowing he's too young to be either. "But only until I tell my parents my secret then we'll go from there." He then paused and realized there was a problem. "Uh, she's not going to be put in a foster home, is she?"

"If we fill out some paperwork, we can avoid that," Horatio replied. "We just need to know her birthday and whatnot."

Danny grinned confidently. "I figured out when her birthday was a while ago."

Danielle looked at Danny in disbelief. "You figured it out? How?"

"Why do you think Tucker is my best friend?" Danny countered. He winked at the ghost girl. Realizing what he meant, Danielle smiled and winked back. "I can email you all of the information about Dani to your computer if that's okay, Lieutenant."

"Please do," said Horatio.

"So I guess you're staying in Miami for awhile, huh?" Danny asked Danielle.

"I guess so. I can still contact you, right?"

"Duh! Of course you can!" Danny happily replied. "Where will you be staying?"

"Uh…"

Horatio stepped in. "My sister-in-law will be her guardian for the time being. She's been watching over Danielle for the past few days. Danielle is actually quite fond of her."

"Well, okay. If Lieutenant Caine trusts her, who am I to judge?" said Danny. A knock on Danny's door interrupted their conversation. "Crud! That's my mom! Gotta go! Talk to you later, Cuz!"

"Bye Danny! Thanks a bunch!"

"That's what family's for!" Danny replied.

"It was nice meeting you, Danny," said Horatio.

"Nice meeting you too, Lieutenant. See ya!" The line ended.

Danielle turned to the redheaded cop. "Am I really staying in Miami?"

Horatio smiled. "Why not? You've made some new friends. You're able to compose yourself in the face of danger. You're abilities could come in handy during our investigations, provided we get permission from Danny of course. I know Yelina enjoys your company."

"Will I be staying with her?"

"I think she'll be more than happy to take care of you."

Danielle's eyes began filling with tears and she embraced Horatio. "I promise I won't be a burden. I'll stay out of trouble."

"There's just one condition though."

"What's that?"

"Don't say 'go to hell' again," Horatio said giving her a half-smile. "Not very ladylike."

Danielle giggled. "Okay. I won't."

"You're lucky your new friends go to the same school," Horatio stated. "They were hoping that you would go there too."

"I'll be going to school with Luna, Leila and Gwen?"

"As soon as we get everything sorted out, yes." Horatio smiled at the black-haired girl. "You know, those three girls were actually complete strangers before their abductions. None of them knew the other existed. It's because of you that the four of you are now friends."

"Really?" asked Danielle in disbelief. "I made them friends with each other?"

"That's right," Horatio confirmed. "You're the glue that holds them all together."

Danielle was overcome with happiness and embraced the redhead again. She even gave him a peck on the cheek.

Horatio looked at her with gentle eyes. "Thank you."

* * *

><p>"Do it," urged Ryan.<p>

"I don't know," said a hesitant Eric.

"Come on, man. Don't make us ask Dani to haunt you," Walter jokingly threatened.

Eric rolled his eyes. "Fine. You win." He approached the Southern Beauty who was currently testing out the Fenton Wrist Rays in the ballistics lab. "Calleigh!"

Calleigh turned around and smiled at Eric. "Hey! What's up?"

"Uh…" Eric turned towards Ryan and Walter who were gesturing him to continue. "Remember everything that was happening before Jesse died?"

Calleigh frowned. "Yeah, I remember. Why are you bringing this up?"

Eric swallowed. "Um…I screwed up big time. I just thought maybe…you can hear me out over dinner tonight?"

Calleigh saw his forehead glisten with sweat, he was so nervous. She never really did hear ALL of the details about Eric's days with the state attorney's office. It would be nice to hear his side of the story. She smiled. "Seven okay with you? I'm in the mood for Thai."

Eric smiled back. "I know just the place. Seven sounds perfect."

"Don't be late," she said flirtatiously. She gave him a kiss on the cheek and left the room.

Walter and Ryan came out of their hiding places and cheered for their friend, patting him on the back and giving each other high-fives.

"Oh, Walter!" said Ryan. "Forget the bet we made earlier about the Thermos. Consider the look on your face at the hospital payment." Ryan then started laughing at the memory of Walter holding the ecto-gun. Priceless.

* * *

><p>After Walter left the crime lab that evening, he put on some workout clothes and went to a nearby basketball court to shoot some hoops. This was something he hasn't done since Jesse died.<p>

Walter shot the ball towards the hoop but missed and started bouncing toward the street. The ball suddenly stopped in mid-bounce. Walter stared at the ball in astonishment.

"We never did have a chance to play that last game, did we?"

Jesse's ghost appeared out of thin air holding the floating basketball.

Walter jumped. "Jesse? Is that you?"

"Who else? I thought since I was in the area, I would see if you wanted to play that game of basketball we never had a chance to do," Jesse explained.

"Uh…yeah…sure," Walter stuttered.

Jesse laughed. "Calm down. I'm not here to haunt you. I just thought you'd want to shoot some hoops with me before I went back to the Ghost Zone."

Walter took a slow, deep breath before talking again. "Right. This is going to take some getting used to."

Jesse just shrugged. He started dribbling the ball. Walter got into position. "Oh! New rule: no ghost powers!"

Jesse pretended to look offended. "What! Oh, come on! Where's the fun in that?"

"It's called 'playing fair', Cardoza," Walter retorted with a smug smile.

Jesse laughed. "Fine. No ghost powers." The two friends then played their final game.

* * *

><p><strong>Several weeks later…<strong>

"Is this the right cemetery?" asked Luna.

"It should be," Gwen answered, "Officer Delko said this is where he's buried."

Dani appeared out of thin air in a tree and landed next to her friends. "I have to say, this isn't how I imagined spending my Saturday afternoon."

The girls jumped at her sudden appearance.

"You seriously have to stop doing that," said Leila.

Dani smiled sheepishly. "Sorry. I guess it comes with being a half-ghost."

"Leila also seriously needs to stop watching 'Buffy the Vampire Slayer'," Gwen muttered to Luna. "I can't believe we're patrolling a cemetery in broad daylight."

"I heard that!" Leila shouted.

Luna ignored her and turned to Dani. "So I hear that you're finally going to school starting on Monday?"

"You bet!" Dani said excitedly. "Yelina finally filled out the last form. The school is going to overlook the fact that I'm only one and a half years old and put me in the same grade as you and Leila."

"A year and a half?" Gwen repeated (Gwen is in the grade below the others).

"Hello? Clone," Dani said referring to herself.

"Oh, right," Gwen realized.

Dani's ghost sense went off as they explored the cemetery. They saw Tim Speedle standing over his grave waiting for them.

"Speedy!" Dani called. The dead detective turned and saw the four girls approaching him.

"Since when do Girl Scouts sell cookies to the dead?" Speed asked jokingly.

Dani rolled her eyes. "Ha ha. Very funny. Did Danny send you here?"

"Obviously," Speed said matter-of-factly. "He wanted someone to check in on you from time to time. Did you send the Thermos back to him?"

"The one Horatio got from New York? Yeah, Danny called last night and told me he got it back," Dani explained.

Luna looked around. "Where's that other guy who was with you?"

"Jesse? Well, he's either in California where he's buried or he's in the Ghost Zone helping Ember file a restraining order against Sidney Poindexter."

"Did he ever say hello to Walter?" asked Dani curiously. "Natalia told me that they were really close."

"Yeah he did," Speed answered. "Jesse's going to come back to play basketball with Walter once a year on the day he died."

"Well, that sounds both touching and depressing at the same time," Leila muttered.

Gwen piped up. "Are there any pesky ghosts that are causing trouble in this cemetery? We want to do a stakeout."

Dani rolled her eyes in embarrassment.

Speed chuckled. "No but how about I tell you where you can check out some allegedly haunted places in town?"

The four girls sat down in the grass (Dani changed back into Danielle) and listened carefully.

Danielle knew she was about to have a crazy new adventure in her new life in Florida. She often visited the crime lab mainly to see Natalia, Horatio or Calleigh. Danielle was happy to know that things between Eric and Calleigh have finally straightened out. The two of them looked so happy together. _'I wonder when he'll propose to her?'_ Danielle was still wondering why Horatio looked so sad all the time. As much as she wanted to ask, she thought it would be rude to pry into his personal life. Everyone said that he doesn't like to talk about it.

Danielle looked around the cemetery, deep in thought, when she saw the silhouette of a woman hovering over a tombstone, beckoning Danielle to come over. She excused herself from the others and went to investigate. By the time she reached the place where the woman was she was gone. What Danielle saw answered the question she had been pondering for the past several weeks. She now knew why Horatio always looked so sad.

Marisol Delko-Caine.

* * *

><p><strong>Awww...cute ending if you ask me. <strong>

**Will I write another CSI Phantom story? I don't know...I'm fresh out of ideas at the moment.**

**I truly believe that Delko and Calleigh should get back together! These last few episodes I've been watching just doesn't give me enough info on whether or not they're still together!**

**For those who have read this but are too shy to review, if you have no idea about some of the references I made, I suggest you read the previous two stories! **

**Let me just say that I love all of my reviewers! Get your friends/enemies to read these! I want to hear their opinions too!**


End file.
